2019:157 - Saint Johnson, Donegal

Monitoring was carried out on Wesleyan Street, St Johnstown, Co. Donegal. The works took place in the vicinity of DG055-028/DG063-003 (Historic Town). The scheme forms part of a larger Water Network Programme that is being undertaken by Irish Water over the next six years, which comprises the upgrading/replacing of water mains and the laying of new water mains at specific locations in Galway City and across eight counties (Donegal, Monaghan, Cavan, Leitrim, Mayo, Roscommon, Galway and Sligo).
Initial works involved the excavation of an east–west orientated exploratory trench along Main Street in order to locate and replace an existing water service main. This trench measured 174m in overall length, 1.2m in depth and averaged 0.7m in width. Local sources revealed that the old watermain was inserted in 1942(??) by the RIC. Beneath the street surface, the stratigraphic sequence of this trench consisted of successive deposits of asphalt and aggregate used to construct the street surface. Beneath these deposits was a build-up of light brownish-orange clayey sand with moderate inclusions of small and medium-sized stones. This material was re-deposited subsoil which more than likely derived from the excavation of the trench into which the original pipe was laid. It was underlain by a mid orange-brown subsoil containing moderate small and medium-sized stone inclusions. This horizon was truncated throughout the trench’s length, by the insertion of intermittent services (e.g. sewerage, broadband, telecom services and ESB cables), resulting in associated ground disturbance. Two culverts or French drains were exposed within the trench at 0.8m below the surface, toward the western end of the street. The first of these was uncovered directly outside (north of) a recorded architectural heritage site (NIAH 40830011, a late nineteenth-century house), with the other being located outside ‘Wizzy Browns’ bookmakers next door. No archaeological features or deposits were encountered in this trench.

Unit 1, Hector Street Mills, Kilrush, Co. Clare.