2004:0701 - LOUGHREA: Barrack Street/Latimer Bridge, Galway

Six trenches were excavated in the course of pre-development testing at Barrack Street/Latimer Bridge, Loughrea. In Trench A the removal of the outhouses exposed a disturbed topsoil with rubble throughout which overlay a soft brown peaty clay that was 0.45m deep and in turn overlay a sandy gravel and rubble deposit. The excavation in Trench A revealed a number of walls and a drain/chute, suggesting the presence of a structure in this area. The structure as revealed measured 3.25m in length and c. 2m wide. It was defined by a stone wall in the east, west and possibly the south. The walls survive to a maximum height of 1m in the west and there is no trace of any roof or covering material. To the north of these walls a stone-built chute allowed for water to flow from the river to this structure. This chute is defined by two large stones on either side with a capstone on top. It measures 0.6m wide and 0.7m high. The opening was filled with a soft silty sand but as excavation work continued water began to flow from this chute and fill the trench. No artefacts were recovered from the area of this feature, but its location and design indicate that it originally had an industrial purpose which was reliant on the use of water from the adjacent river.

The stratigraphy in Trenches B, C and D consisted of disturbed topsoil overlying a light-grey sticky clay with moderate stone inclusions. The stratigraphy revealed in Trenches E and F was similar, with sod and topsoil overlying a brown clayey subsoil. Underlying the subsoil there was a light-brown sandy gravel layer. In Trench F, two cuts in the gravel layer were filled with small angular stones and appear to be the result of field stones being dumped/buried. No features of archaeological significance were recovered from these trenches.

Ballydavid South, Athenry, Co. Galway