County: Tipperary Site name: SILVER SPRING HOUSE, Glenalemy, Clonmel
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 83:7 Licence number: 00E0173
Author: Mary Henry, Mary Henry Archaeological Services Ltd.
Site type: House - 18th century
Period/Dating: Modern (AD 1750-AD 2000)
ITM: E 621776m, N 623265m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.360536, -7.680285
Archaeological pre-construction testing was carried out to the rear of Silver Spring House, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, in accordance with a request from Clonmel Corporation for further information. The owners of Silver Spring House intend to convert the house into a hotel and build an extension to the rear of the main building. Silver Spring House is located c. 2km east of the town of Clonmel. It was built in 1748 to accommodate the Clonmel Charter School. The school closed in 1824, and in the following year the property was acquired by Charles Bianconi, who renamed it Silver Spring. Bianconi, an Italian immigrant, established the first national carrier service, based in Clonmel. The house was converted for domestic use, and an ornamental garden with pond and terrace was added.
Five test-trenches were opened on the site of the proposed extension. The findings from the testing confirmed that the area of the proposed development had been predominantly an undeveloped and open piece of ground behind the house. There was nothing found to suggest that there had been an extension to the rear of Silver Spring House or an earlier structure. Only two features of interest were picked up in the test-trenches. Firstly, there were spreads of mortar in two trenches. These were residual from the construction of the outhouses to the rear of the main house. The second feature was a sandstone wall bonded with a very hard lime mortar. The wall was only uncovered in one trench, and it was not possible to determine its function or date. However, it did appear to have an association with the house and may have been a retaining wall.
24 Queen Street, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary
