Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on a low rise overlooking low-lying poorly drained grassland to the W, Williamstown House 55m to SSE. Depicted as a small square-shaped building on the 1837 OS 6-inch map annotated as ‘Castle in ruins’. Annotated as 'Castle (Site of)' on the revised 1911 ed. OS 6-inch map indicating that the castle was levelled between these dates. The field fence which marks the townland boundary with Williamstown (Rochford) lies 20m to E. No surface remains visible of levelled castle which appears to have stood in the S quadrant of a large rectangular-shaped area, enclosed by an earthen bank and external fosse which probably represents the remains of a castle bawn (WM013-060001-). A stone head (WM013-060002-) incorporated into an outhouse in the farmyard of Williamstown House may have been taken from the castle. Williamstown Castle is not depicted on either the 1655-9 Down Survey parish map of Killulagh or the Barony map of Delvin (NLI, MS 723-4). In 1641 the lands of Williamstown belonged to Sir Thomas Nugent who is listed in the Down Survey as an ‘Irish Papist’.

Compiled by: Frank Coyne and Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 10 April 2018

References

NLI, MS 723-4 - National Library of Ireland, The parish maps of the Down Survey for the County of Westmeath, attested by W. Petty, in 1659. Copied by Daniel O'Brien. A set of 67 maps with accompanying terriers in two volumes, 1786-7. Dublin.