County: Waterford Site name: Tramore Burrow
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 24E0352
Author: Caitlyn Haskins
Site type: Non-archaeological
Period/Dating: Modern (AD 1750-AD 2000)
ITM: E 659106m, N 601268m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.160077, -7.136128
Mizen Archaeology undertook an archaeological impact assessment, including a programme of archaeological testing, in association with the application for the proposed development at Tramore Burrow, Tramore, Co. Waterford. Testing was carried out over the course of two days in March 2024.
The proposed development fell within an area that had previously been a part of the intertidal Back Strand, prior to reclamation works in the 1860s. Afterwards, the area was on the fringes of a horse-racing tracking, which provided a large draw to the area until its embankments were breached by the sea in 1911.
In the intervening years, the area has seen further development. It was used by the County Council as a rubbish dump, with a tarmac road running through for access. The rubbish dump was later sealed, and hard gravel fill was laid down to facilitate use as a car park. Much of the western and south-western side of the site were subject to an exclusion zone in relation to a main sewer line running through it. As such, the majority of the assessment area had been heavily disturbed, which was confirmed by the archaeological testing. Only small areas of natural material were identified within the test trenches, and these were either immediately under the gravel fill or below dumped material, indicating that the area had been stripped of topsoil previously, and portion of the natural subsoil was excavated to accommodate rubbish disposal.
Mizen Archaeology, Unit 3, Kinsale Commercial Park, Kinsale, Co. Cork
