County: Cork Site name: YOUGHAL: Youghal Court House
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 01E1186
Author: Bernice Molloy, Margaret Gowen & Co. Ltd.
Site type: Excavation - miscellaneous
Period/Dating: Multi-period
ITM: E 610504m, N 578031m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 51.954270, -7.847171
The courthouse in Youghal is at the junction of Quay Lane and Market Lane, to the north-east of the medieval town wall. It lies on the site of the former market. The market house went out of use and was demolished to make way for the construction of the courthouse in the late 1840s.
It is intended to redevelop the courthouse and extend it to its rear. Geotech Ltd excavated five engineering test-pits around the perimeter of the courthouse to inspect the foundations. These were monitored as part of the archaeological assessment.
Nothing of archaeological significance was noted in Test-pits 1, 2 and 3, which were positioned along the north-western and north-eastern façades of the courthouse. Test-pit 4 was to the rear of the courthouse, within the courthouse yard. It was 1.8m long and 0.95m wide. A masonry wall running parallel to the courthouse wall was visible in this trench at 0.5m below present ground level. This may be the foundation wall of the market. Test-pit 5 was also to the rear of the courthouse. It was 1.8m long and 0.95m wide. A cobbled surface was exposed at 0.95m below present ground level. This may also be associated with the former market house.
The archaeological levels lay at 0.5–0.95m below present ground level. It was recommended that the foundations of the proposed development avoid the archaeological deposits and that monitoring take place during development. This was recommended also because of the proximity of the development to the city wall.
2 Killiney View, Albert Road Lower, Glenageary, Co. Dublin
