2019:336 - Neale Road, Ballinrobe, Mayo

The test excavation of a site in advance of its development at the Neale Road in Ballinrobe, County Mayo, was carried out on 16/17 October and 11/12 November 2019. The project consisted of the construction of a new Town Hall for Ballinrobe. Testing was carried out in response to conditions of planning permission granted by Mayo County Council and was necessary as the proposed development was located within the constraint for the historic town of Ballinrobe (MA118-022).
The proposed development site was the location of a jail for the town, thought to have been established in the 1760s. It is marked on an Estate Map of Ballinrobe darting to 1832-33, as 'Bridewell' and on the 1st edition of the OS six-inch sheet (1838) as ' Gaol'. In 1877 permission was given by the Lord Lieutenant to close it and its activities were moved to the Market/Courthouse at the northern end of Main Street. It was subsequently sold in 1886 to Rev. James Ronayne for £80, following which it was converted into a Town Hall. A historic sitting of the first Court under the new 'Dáil', to adjudicate on a land dispute, took place in the Town Hall on 26 May 1920. The Town Hall continued to be used for various community activities up until the late 1990s when it was closed. It was demolished shortly afterwards.
Six trenches were initially excavated by machine to best cover the area of the proposed development. The trenches measured 19.9m, 23.7m, 15m, 20.5m, 6.1m and 8.5m long respectively; 1.6-2.1m wide and 0.2-1.75m deep. The testing revealed rubble fill and topsoil on the surface, above quarried stone and concrete, above natural subsoil and a number of wall foundations. The topsoil was a recent accumulation of organic material. The quarried stone appeared to be associated with an adjacent modern development to the north of the site. The rubble fill and concrete were associated with the demolition of the previous Town Hall building and the adjacent development to the north.
Having discussed the results of the initial testing with Mayo County Council and the National Monuments Service, it was agreed that the wall foundations be fully uncovered and recorded. An area measuring 11-18.5m north-north-east/south-south-west by 11m, located 3.5-4.5m from the north-north-east site boundary and 3.5-4.5m from the west-north-west site boundary, was reduced to reveal the full extent of the wall foundations.
Seven wall foundations were in evidence. F1 extended from the north-north-east end of the area for 11.5m north-north-east/south-south-west along its west-north-west side and measured 0.5-1.6m wide. F3 extended from the north-north-east end of the area for 10.2m north-north-east/south-south-west along its east-south-east side and measured 1.2-1.3m wide. F2 extended between F1 and F3 along the north-north-east side of the area but did not appear to be tied into either wall. It measured 6.7m west-north-west/east-south-east and 0.85m wide. F4 extended west-north-west/east-south-east between F1 and F3 along the south-south-west side of the area and was tied into both walls. It measured 6.8m long and 1.1-1.4m wide. At the south-south-east end of F1 was a narrower wall (F6), which measured 0.85m wide and which extended 1.5m to the south-south-east, terminating at an area of concrete. At the south-south-east end of F3 was a narrower wall (F7), which measured 0.85m wide and which extended south-south-east beyond the south-east end of the area.
Three of the wall foundations (F1, F3 and F4) appeared to be the foundations of the building marked and named on the Estate Map of Ballinrobe dating to 1832-33 and the 1st edition OS six-inch map of 1838, which is thought to have been constructed in the 1760s. The two narrower wall foundations (F6 and F7) are also depicted on the 1st edition OS map as boundary walls extending south from the 'Gaol' building. F2 may be an internal division of the 'Gaol' building or a later wall associated with the Town Hall. The seventh wall foundation (F5), which was visible in the westernmost of the initial six test trenches, was a poorly constructed wall which also appeared to be related to the later Town Hall building.

4 Lecka Grove, Castlebar Road, Ballinrobe, County Mayo