2019:481 - Creevehill (Crievehill Quarry), Fermanagh

NMI Burial Excavation Records

County: Fermanagh Site name: Creevehill (Crievehill Quarry)

Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: AE/19/74

Author: Christopher J. Farrimond, FarrimondMacManus Ltd (Derry), 150 Elmvale, Culmore, Derry BT48 8SL.

Site type: No archaeological significance

Period/Dating:

ITM: E 640630m, N 848453m

Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.383081, -7.374539

Planning Consent has been granted for a proposed 9 hectare lateral extension in a northerly, easterly and westerly direction to the existing quarry area at Crievehill Quarry, Fivemiletown, Co. Fermanagh, (Planning Ref: L/1980/0266/F), with the condition that an archaeological programme of works is implemented in accordance with Planning Policy Guidelines PPS6 BH4 to provide for the identification and evaluation of the archaeological remains within the site and for mitigation of the impacts of the development through excavation recording or by preservation of remains and for the preparation of an archaeological report.

The proposed lateral extensions to quarrying works at the site are to be undertaken in four distinct phases, with a fifth phase of works comprising additional sinkings within the area of the existing quarry.  Consequently, the monitoring works undertaken during 9 – 24 January 2014 under licence no. AE/14/002 by FarrimondMacManus Ltd, having been commissioned by Acheson and Glover Group, relate to an area measuring approximately 285m (north-east/south-west) x 70m within the south-east portion of the proposed development area only (i.e. the southern portion of Phase 1, only).

Topsoil removal revealed undisturbed glacial subsoil, which consisted of a sandy, gravelly clay, at a depth of 0.3–0.5m across the site.  No archaeological features, remains or deposits were identified during this initial phase of monitoring works at the site.

During the most recent phase of archaeological works at the site, which are the subject of this report, pre-development archaeological evaluation works were undertaken during 14 – 17 June 2019 throughout the remainder of the Phase 1 extension area on behalf of Quinn Building Products.

Twenty-three trenches (totalling approximately 1,150 linear metres of trenching), were excavated within the remainder of the Phase 1 extension area of the proposed extension to quarrying during on-site works, within an area of c.4ha or 10 acres.

On-site evaluation works revealed glacial subsoil throughout each of the trenches and no archaeological features, remains or deposits were identified during the evaluation works.

Christopher J. Farrimond, FarrimondMacManus Ltd (Derry), 150 Elmvale, Culmore, Derry BT48 8SL.