House - 17th century

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated in pasture at the summit of a low N-S drumlin ridge. A castle is depicted on the Down Survey (1655-6) map at Loughill on the county map or Lowhill on the barony and parish maps of Drumreilly parish where it is represented as a house with a chimney. See this web-page accessed on 25/09/2019 downsurvey.tcd.ie. On these maps Sir James Craig, a Protestant, is described as the owner, and the house was probably built in fulfilment of the land grant of a thousand acres he had received in 1620 and had taken up by 1622 (Mac Cuarta 1999, 130). Traditionally, this was an O'Rourke castle, but there is no supporting evidence of this. According to McParlan (1802, 90) the house, one gable of which was then standing, was captured by a Major Martin Armstrong after the battle of Cavan town on 11 February 1690 when Williamite forces burnt the town, but Armstrong lost his life at this battle (Childs 2007, 190-1). No archaeological feature was visible in pasture at ground level in 1991 (SMR file).

See the attached view from the Down Survey bstony map (N at top left) reproduced courtesy of the National Library of Ireland (Ms 717).

The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Leitrim' compiled by Michael J. Moore (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2003). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of revised upload: 10 October 2019

References

SMR file - Sites and monuments record files in the National Monuments Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

Childs, J. 2007, The Williamite Wars in Ireland 1688-1691. London. Hambledon Continuum.

McParlan, M.D. 1802 Statistical survey of the county Leitrim. Dublin.

Mac Cuarta, B. (ed.) 1999 Leitrim Plantation papers. 1620-1622. Journal of Cumann Seanchas Breifne (Breifne Historical Society) 9, no. 35, 114-39.