House - 17th century

The National Monuments Service's description

On a relatively flat plain, with land rising gently to the N and NE and a hill rises behind Meldrum House c. 400m to the E. The Civil Survey (1654-6) describes 'a good stone house with a bawne about it' in Meldrum where 'James Sall of Moeldrom Esqr Irish Papist' was the proprietor in 1630 (Simington 1931, vol. 1, 226). The building marked as 'Meldrum Castle' on the OS 6-inch maps appears to be the stone house described in the Civil Survey. It is a long rectangular building (overall dims 21m E-W; 10.1m N-S; int. dims 18.9m E-W; 8.3m N-S; S wall T 0.9m; gables T c. 1.05m) built of limestone rubble roughly coursed. Only the lower courses (H 0.3-0.5m) of the S wall and E and W gables survive; the N wall and NE and NW angles are not visible at ground level. A possible short length (c. 2.5m) of the N wall is discernible where there is concentration of stones, roughly mid-way along the line of the wall. The OS letters (O'Flanagan 1930, vol. 1, 110 (295)) describe a building which is 'said to be the remains of a castle but it looks more like a dwelling house. It measures fifty seven feet [17.37m] in length from east to west and twenty five [7.6m] in breath from north to south'. There is an L-shaped arrangement of rubble immediately W of the W gable which could be interpreted as a chamber (Wth c. 4.8m; L c. 8m) and indeed was on the 2nd (1952 & 1954) ed. OS 6-inch map where it is drawn as such. However, in 1840 the OS letters describe a building which was in a much better state of preservation then it is today and no mention is made of a chamber adjoining the W end. In the OS letters mention is made of a fragment of the W wall which 'remains to the height of about twenty five feet [7.6m]', this is likely to have collapsed by the 2nd OS revision and the rubble from this wall probably accounts for the 'chamber' at the W end of the building. The OS letters also mention two fragments of the S wall which had survived to a height of thirteen feet [3.9m] and were three feet [0.9m] thick, however, these have also since collapsed. No trace of the bawn (TS061-056002-) survives at ground level.

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 26 August 2011

References

O'Flanagan, Rev. M. (Compiler) 1930 Letters containing information relative to the antiquities of the county of Tipperary collected during the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1840. Bray.

Simington, R.C. (ed.) 1931 The Civil survey, AD 1654-1656. Vol I: county of Tipperary: eastern and southern baronies. Dublin. Irish Manuscripts Commission.