2001:847 - DROGHEDA: St Peter’s Church of Ireland Church, Louth

As the site lies inside the zone of archaeological potential for Drogheda town, an archaeological assessment and an architectural survey were carried out prior to the demolition of the buildings. As a result conditions were difficult, and the area which could be tested was limited.

Three test-trenches were excavated. Trench 1 was to the rear of the buildings (Clerk’s House and Sexton’s House). The area had been greatly disturbed in recent years and the majority of the ground consisted of made-up ground. The north foundation wall of the extension to the rear of house 2 (Clerk’s House) was exposed within this trench. The corresponding south wall was not exposed in situ within the trench although the partial remains were contained within the fill. This wall represents the foundation wall for an extension built to the rear of the Clerk’s House in the 19th–20th century and is visible on the 1908 25-inch map. The location of this wall has been recorded and it will therefore not require any further archaeological investigation. Modern and medieval pottery and medieval floor tiles were, however, recovered from the rubble backfill within this trench.

Trench 2 was excavated through house 2 (Clerk’s House). A north–south wall was exposed towards the centre of the trench. This wall is the original back wall of the house and could possibly be the wall depicted on Ravell’s map of 1749. The location of this wall is therefore recorded and as a result it will require no further archaeological investigation. No finds were recovered from this trench.

Trench 3 was excavated 2.15–3m north of the coach house, aligned east–west. This area was greatly disturbed by the roots of a large tree within the grounds of the rectory. Garden soil was exposed throughout this trench. A single course of a possible wall/stone surface was exposed at the western edge of this trench. Brick was also recovered from this feature and it may simply be a layer of rubble. This was aligned east–west and does not extend southwards towards the parish hall (coach house). This feature will not be disturbed, as the development will not extend further north than the existing building. Finds recovered from this trench included post-medieval/modern pottery, medieval pottery, glass bottles and fragments of brick.

The buildings examined in this survey comprise two former dwelling-houses, a former coach house, and a church hall that was formerly a charity school. The coach house appears to have been built sometime in the middle of the 18th century and was distinguished by high red brick arches and loop windows to allow light in. It seems possible, based mainly on the existence of a large arch in an original external wall of the Clerk’s House, that the two dwelling-houses began life as stables extending southwards from the coach house. They were later used as dwellings and became known as the Clerk’s House and the Sexton’s House. During the 19th and 20th centuries, extensions were added to the rear of the dwellings and the eastern façades were completely rebuilt.

The survey described here aimed to provide an account of standing structures from an architectural heritage perspective in fulfilment of a condition of the grant of planning permission. There was little of these buildings that could be regarded as being of significant cultural heritage value or of architectural merit, however. Addition 2, the tearoom, was considered to be the only attractive structure both externally and internally, and unfortunately this extension has developed some structural faults. The relationship between the different building phases of the site was, however, worthy of recording, especially the way in which the hall and former coach house were combined. There were also several fixtures and fittings of value identified that could be preserved and reused rather than destroyed (e.g. the decorative chimney-pots of Addition 2 and the three ornate fireplaces). The date stone set into the Magdalene Street façade of the church hall should also be preserved in the event of any future demolition proposals.

The proposed development will involve the complete removal of all standing structures except for the western portion of the church hall. The ground beneath the parish hall (coach house) and the first house (Sexton’s House) was not tested as these buildings have not yet been demolished. The area tested is, however, greatly disturbed and it is likely that the untested area is also disturbed. Standard strip foundations will be employed and ground disturbance will therefore be kept to a minimum.

15 Trinity Street, Drogheda, Co. Louth