County: Waterford Site name: KILRUSH (Power), Dungarvan
Sites and Monuments Record No.: WA031-040---- Licence number: 03E0948
Author: Daniel Noonan, The Archaeology Company
Site type: Ecclesiastical site
Period/Dating: Multi-period
ITM: E 624790m, N 593617m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.093912, -7.638205
An impact assessment of a proposed housing development at Kilrush (Power), Dungarvan, Co. Waterford, was carried out. The site is beside Glebe, a walled ecclesiastical site situated in the adjoining field. The townland of Kilrush gains its name from the 'Church of the Shrubbery', referring to the church and graveyard site to the north-west. Kilrush was part of the western suburbs of the historic town of Dungarvan; the town was an important medieval administrative and commercial centre that developed from the early 13th century around King John's Castle (SMR 31:40(01)).
Five test-trenches with offshoots were machine excavated. In Trench 1, located closest to the boundary wall of the ecclesiastical site, a pinkish-brown silty clay layer with moderate to frequent amounts of small angular stone and occasional charcoal flecks was uncovered at an average depth of 1.3m. The substantial spread was possibly a surface associated with activity within a larger monument area than the one presently defined by the graveyard. No features of archaeological significance were uncovered in the remaining trenches.
Birr Technology Centre, Mill Island, Birr, Co. Offaly
