2005:719 - LEE STRAND, EDWARD STREET/J.J. SHEEHY ROAD, TRALEE, Kerry

Testing was carried out here in 2001 (Excavations 2001, No. 592) as part of an assessment. Monitoring of all groundworks was undertaken in October 2005. The site is within the urban environs of Tralee and is also within the northern limits of the town’s prescribed zone of archaeological potential.
The site was flat and subrectangular in plan (c. 100m by 45m), with the long axis orientated north-west to south-east, and had been operating as a carpark. A track machine removed the segregated spoil (tarmac, limestone chippings, gravel, concrete and coalyard debris) from the site. During the entire excavation process there was never more than 1m2 of the original topsoil exposed. The tarmac layer was 0.1m in depth and laid on a foundation of limestone chippings between 0.3 and 0.5m in depth. Traces of the site’s industrial history were recorded under this foundation layer. The OS map of 1879 for the town of Tralee shows that the site was then used as a nursery. The outline of pathways and boundary divisions was clearly visible. The original topsoil cover was located c. 0.7m under this modern layer and varied in depth from 0.25 to 0.35m. Sherds of post-medieval pottery, fragments of animal bone and industrial debris (nuts, bolts, nails, lengths of copper and lead pipe) were included within the topsoil.
Several pits associated with the later industrial phase were recorded throughout the site. These contained mainly industrial debris, red-brick and coal deposits and a possible oil sump. Two pieces of heavy-duty industrial machinery were also excavated from the site. A series of linear features, aligned north–south, may be associated with the earlier use of the site as a garden nursery. One of the linear features, aligned east–west, extended over 51m in length. It was 0.15m in depth and 0.48m wide and filled with dark-brown humus-rich clay. A small area of a cobbled surface was exposed in the north-western corner of the yard, an area which seemed to be undisturbed by the industrial activity. However, it could not be dated to a pre- or post-industrial phase. A section of a ditch recorded in the same area may be the original property boundary prior to the building of the red sandstone wall that was later added to for extra height.
The primary function of the site was for the storage and distribution of coal. A private rail network, employing the Irish gauge 5'3" rail, was constructed within the coalyard and was linked to the Tralee rail terminus directly to the north of the site.