County: Down Site name: Scotch Street, Downpatrick
Sites and Monuments Record No.: DOW037–091 Licence number: AE/10/173
Author: David Kilner and Johanna Vuolteenaho, Archaeological Development Services Ltd, Unit 6, Channel Wharf, 21 Old Channel Road, Belfast, BT3 9DE.
Site type: 18th-century urban
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 748552m, N 844630m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.328735, -5.716012
The proposed development concerns the refurbishment and extension of the existing Downs Arts Centre on Scotch Street/Irish Street in Downpatrick, Co. Down. The current Downs Arts Centre occupies the former town hall and an adjacent building, No. 1 Scotch Street. As part of the proposed development, a three-storey adjacent property at No. 3 Scotch Street will be demolished and an extension to the Down Arts Centre built in its plot.
The proposed development is located within the historic settlement of Downpatrick, which has seen activity from the Early Christian period onwards. Development in the area had seen evidence of medieval and post-medieval activity uncovered with the Down Arts Centre (originally Downpatrick Town Hall) replacing a building dating to the 17th century. Given this, there was the possibility that No. 3 Scotch Street, though altered into a commercial property, may have fabric dating to these periods and it was therefore surveyed prior to demolition. The survey revealed that the ground and first floors dated to the later 18th century, while the second floor was a later 19th-century addition. No earlier features were noted during the building survey.
Once the building was demolished, the ground was prepared for the rebuild, with the existing ground level lowered by 0.4m across the entire property and three trenches excavated for beam foundations. These beam foundation trenches measured 0.8m wide by 0.5m deep. Nothing of archaeological significance was uncovered.
