Castle - tower house

The National Monuments Service's description

Currently surrounded by steel fence in open space outside St Catherines' housing estate between Skerries and Loughshinny. The Civil Survey 1654 mentions part of an old castle at Kinure an earlier name for Rush Demesne (Downe Survey) with Thomas Delahide and Robert Walsh as residents (Simington 1945, 61). The lands of Rush and Rush Demesne where the tower house is located were part of a medieval manor vested in the Earl of Ormond from the time of Edward 1st until the year 1641. In 1666 the Duke of Ormond had a confirmation grant of Kinure 594 acres, and his attender the family of Echlin obtained a title in this manor, which descended to Sir Rober Echlin in 1767 (D'Alton 1838, 216-7).
This partially restored tower house is square in plan, rising to two storeys with projecting angle towers in the NE and SW. It is built of coursed limestone masonry. Entrance in the NE, formerly through dressed round-arched doorway, which has been removed since 1979. Another entrance in the SW. The ground floor has a vaulted roof with a fireplace inserted the E wall and wall presses in the N wall either side of a single light window (int. dims. L 6.9m; Wth 4.4m; wall T 1.1m). A stone spiral staircase provides access to first floor (Mc Dix 1899, 60; Healy 1975, 20). According to the structural survey, the extensive vegetation growth on the outside and the collapse of wall facings on the inside will lead to gradual degradation of the walls (Nolan 2011). The context of the monument has been further compromised by the insertion of a railing and playing field in close proximity to the towerhouse.

Compiled by: Geraldine Stout

Updated by: Christine Baker

Date of upload: 5 December 2014

References

Nolan, D. 2011 Structural Assessment & Proposals for Repair for Fifteen Archaeological Monuments in Fingal County Council Ownership, http://www.fingal.ie/media/Structural%20assessment%20of%20archaeological%20monuments%20in%20Fingal.pdf

Simington, R.C. (ed.) 1945 The Civil survey, AD 1654-1656. Vol. VII: county of Dublin. Dublin. Irish Manuscripts Commission.

D'Alton, J. 1838 (Reprint 1976) The history of the county of Dublin. Cork. Tower Books.