2026:069 - Carrick-on-Suir Town Centre, Tipperary

Archaeological monitoring of 1750m of Uisce Éireann watermains replacement scheme was carried out on Castle Lane, New Street, Main street, West Gate, Bridge Street and Greystone Street, Carrick-on-Suir. For the most part the exposed stratigraphy consisted of modern street strata and natural subsoils, which were heavily truncated by existing services.

During the works cultural heritage was encountered at two locations. While exposed, neither was impacted by the works. They were archaeologically recorded. In one instance it necessitated a design modification to bypass and thus protect the heritage.

The first entailed the exposure 19^th-century cellar on the west end of Main Street and the second involved the subsurface upper courses of an arch of the northern extent of the bridge on Bridge Street and at the junction with Castle Lane. Adjacent possible remains of a contemporary mill race were also exposed immediately to the north of the bridges arch. Both had been covered over as part of the mid to late 19^th-century construction of Castle Lane. The 19^th-century cellar on Main Street was uncovered on the north side of Main Street at ITM 639910 621812. A second adjacent surface of the cellar capping was uncovered at ITM 639909 621813. However, both may be part of the same cellar. The overlying stratigraphy consisted of 0.2m tarmac; onto 0.5m blue stone chip to base and onto cellar roofs. The cellar roof(ves) were exposed at the base of the trench, with no further excavation required that would have intruded into its fabric. The material composition is that of mixed limestone and sandstone rubble stone bonded by a hard gritty mortar with a high concentration of small broken or ground pebble chips. A pre-existing 0.33m by 0.2m hole was surmounted by a circular manhole at street level. This is suggestive of a possible former coal hole. The floor of the cellar consisted of modern rubbish. It is thus probable that there is an active access to the cellar from the adjacent 19^th-century building. The visible vertical internal wall appears to be composed of random rubble built to courses and with a vertical profile. The roof appears to have a domed aspect on the interior, but the small size of the hole precluded more detailed examination. The second cellar structure location, 1.5m to the west, was at a shallower depth of 0.35m beneath the street surface and consisted of the same material. It was exposed for the full width of the trench and for a length of 1.1m. Neither structure was impacted by the works as the pipe laying entailed shallow installation at this location.

The first indication of the 15^th-16^th-century bridge was during works at the west end of Castle Lane. The open-cut excavation dislodged a flagstone at the base of the trench as soon as it was moved it revealed a void (ITM 639855 621711), beneath stratigraphy of 0.1m tarmac; onto 0.29m sand, stone and rubble; onto 2.88m flat large stone random rubble wall to riverbed visible at base. The void presented a 2.7m drop to the surface of the river (low tide conditions). It was apparent that this section of Castle Lane adjacent and to the east side of the bridge (Old Bridge) formed mid-late 19^th-century streetscape, in which the west end of Castle Lane at the Old Bridge was buttressed over the river to mitigate an awkward junction of Castle, Lane, Bridge Street, Old Bridge and North Quay. Based upon the Ordnance Survey maps this change to the street layout took place between 1838 and 1905. The adjacent bridge structure (TS085-004007) is attributed to dating to between 1447 and the 16^th century. It is possible that the quay wall is contemporary, though is most likely to be within the later date range. The void presented the quay wall set back from the current quay and thus was of probable medieval to post-medieval date on the north side of the void and running in an east to west direction. The 0.55m by 0.4m void enabled limited visual examination. The entire north profiles consisted of 0.1m tarmac; onto 0.29m sand, stone and rubble; onto 2.88m flat large stone random rubble wall to riverbed visible at base. The remaining sides consisted of modern concrete and services above the river. The east-facing arch of the bridge, now beneath the street, was visible to the east side of the void but was inaccessible to any examination. However, this side of the void consisted of 0.1m tarmac; onto 0.54m precast concrete on its south side or 0.37m loose/reset rubble to the north side; onto c. 3m diameter cast iron pipe. Beyond this cut and dressed large voussoirs were visible as part of the east-facing northern arch, which extended to the south from the Quay wall. These voussoirs were set back c. 0.4m to the west of the void.

Works on the south end of Bridge Street revealed the upper surface of the north bridge arch beneath the street surface at ITM 639851 621722. It presented itself at the base of the trench as a mortar-bonded random rubble south-westward rising ramp-like structure of 3m in length along the trench and 1.2m (width of trench). It continued further to the southwest beyond the extent of the trench and towards the bridge. Its north-east half is set as limestone aligned northwest to southeast – rise of the ramp aspect – with the stone measuring 0.2m by 0.1m to 0.4m by 0.18m. These stones appeared set with the narrow aspect facing upwards and thus possibly the upper surface of a corbelling or vaulting element. The stones in the south-western half were laid flat and thus possibly were capping stones to an underlying corbelling. The exposed stone measured 0.25m by 0.2m to 0.6m by 0.3m. The north-eastern end of the structure is truncated by existing electricity ducts. The structure at this end is 0.4m beneath the street surface and rises to 0.25m at its south-west end. This section of the works was subject to redesign to avoid any disturbance. It was covered with a membrane and backfilled.

A medieval wall was encountered 4.7m to the northwest of the uncovered bridge structure at ITM 639855 621727. This wall is at the southern end of bridge and aligned with the southern gable end of the terraced house to the east of the street. Its north-west to south-east orientation sets it perpendicular to Bridge Street and parallel to the river. This wall may comprise the original quay wall. However, it is also speculated that as it aligns with a weir in the river to the west of Bridge Street, giving the possibility of being part of a mill race or similar structure. The wall is composed of lime mortar bonded random rubble stone with exposed north-east face of two to three courses. The stone measures 0.18m by 0.1m to 0.4m by 0.2m. It would originally have extended across the full width of the trench. However, it has been truncated on the south-east side of the trench by existing services. The current works set the ducts in the same area of truncation, thus avoiding any impact upon this structure.