County: Mayo Site name: Westport House car park and storm water tank, Westport Demesne, Westport
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 23E0293
Author: Kate Taylor
Site type: Burnt stone spread, 19th-century buildings
Period/Dating: Multi-period
ITM: E 498680m, N 784900m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.803763, -9.538192
Test trenching examined two areas of proposed development within the Westport House estate. A trench in the location of a proposed storm water tank, opposite the Coach House, revealed no material of archaeological interest. Trenches in the area of an expanded car park and associated works, south-east of the Farmyard complex, exposed a number of features of archaeological potential.
In a field north of the current car park a small patch of redeposited, disturbed, burnt stone material was identified which may indicate the presence of a burnt stone spread or fulacht fia elsewhere within the field.
The main concentration of potential archaeological features was south of the existing car park, in a dry field that rises to a steep-sided hillock in its centre. The trenching revealed that part of this hillock is in fact the site of one or more large stone-built structures, with partial standing remains buried by demolition rubble. The corner of at least one building was identified, with walls surviving to over 0.8m in height. To the south, close to the summit of the hillock, over 1.4m depth of rubble was revealed, suggesting that a large part of this hill consists of structural material, either standing or demolished. A separate wall identified is likely to be a boundary rather than a building. Historical mapping indicates that, in the mid 19th century, the area south-west of the current car park was formerly occupied by a number of buildings and a yard, it is likely that the remains exposed in test trenches represent these buildings. By the late 19th century the whole complex, along with numerous other nearby structures, had been removed and this part of the estate had been remodelled.
One further feature of archaeological potential was encountered to the south-east of these structural remains. This curvilinear gully contained burnt material and showed signs of in situ burning. The feature remains undated and, whilst it could be associated with the 19th-century farm workings, it could equally have an earlier origin.
TVAS (Ireland) Ltd Ahish, Ballinruan, Crusheen, Co. Clare
