2024:488 - Ballyglass, Barrackpark, Pollboy, Mountainthird, Shanvaus and Twigspark, Leitrim

Uisce Éireann’s Water Network Programme, Lurganboy to Shanvaus scheme, is located c.3km northwest of Manorhamilton in County Leitrim. The scheme involved the installation of c.1105m of new water mains along the existing roadway L2136, although the south-western 130m were located within greenfield and through a bridge across the Shanvaus River. The installation methods used were horizontal directional drilling and open-cut trenching.
The monitoring followed a high-level Cultural Heritage Screening Assessment (CHSA) undertaken for the scheme by Archaeological Management Solutions. The CHSA found that the scheme would not impact the Zone of Notification or Zone of Archaeological Potential for any Recorded Monuments or sites listed on the Sites and Monuments Record; however, an area of archaeological potential was identified in the vicinity of the Shanvaus River. A bridge labelled ‘Shanvaus Bridge’ was depicted on the first-edition six-inch (1837) and 25-inch (1909) Ordnance Survey maps in this location.
The archaeological monitoring was carried out on 7 November 2024.
Excavation of a section of a continuous open-cut trench totalling c.40m within an area of archaeological potential in the vicinity of the Shanvaus River, and across the bridge, along the scheme route was archaeologically monitored.
No potential archaeological objects, features or deposits were found during the monitoring of the Lurganboy to Shanvaus scheme. The top of the stone arch of the bridge was revealed in the trench.