2003:435 - LOUGH DERG: Station Island, Donegal

The site is located on Station Island, Lough Derg, an important centre of pilgrimage since the medieval period. The proposed development contains many elements, including the demolition and reconstruction of a portion of St Mary’s Chapel—the oldest building on the island—the demolition and reconstruction of the adjacent gift shop, the construction of a large new building (the Hall of Reconciliation) in the island’s north-east corner and the excavation of service trenches across the length of the island. A considerable amount of work had already been completed when we were contacted, including the demolition and rebuilding of the chapel and gift shop and most of the piling for the Hall of Reconciliation. Some of the piling and the entirety of the service trench were monitored during the first two weeks of February 2003. The entire site is within the confines of SMR 101:4, ecclesiastical remains.

With the exception of the foundations of an early 20th-century building, no evidence of archaeological activity was revealed during any of the site work. It is unlikely that archaeological material would have been encountered during the works carried out in the absence of an archaeologist. Minimal excavation was involved in the demolition and reconstruction of the church and the gift shop rests almost entirely on land reclaimed in the last century. The monitoring of the piling for the Hall of Reconciliation would likewise have borne little fruit. A number of piles were monitored while the author was present and the amount of water ingress reduced visibility to nil. The excavation of the service trench stretching the length of the island, with a width of 0.4m and a depth of 0.5–0.6m, was monitored. The remains of an early modern building, 8.55m wide, were cut by the trench between the church/gift shop area and the dormitories. External stone walls, 0.65m wide, were revealed at the eastern and western ends, with two internal stone walls, 0.45m wide, also exposed. The remains of a concrete floor were revealed inside the building, indicating a likely 20th-century date for the structure. While the floor could be later, the width of the walls is consistent with that of a 19th- to early 20th-century building. No further evidence of earlier activity was revealed throughout the excavation of the trench, with the exception of some early modern crockery and bottle glass.

Cloonfad Cottage, Cloonfad, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim