What is recorded here

Farragh Castle stood as a small square ruin on a low Mayo knoll, notable because the castle and its bawn have completely vanished from the landscape. Water from a nearby stream once drove a flax mill beside the site, suggesting the castle supported local industry rather than mere defence. The complete disappearance of both structures turns the memory into a ghost story about how quickly human ambition returns to soil.

In pasture, located on elevated ground. This castle is shown on the Down Survey Barony map (1656-8). It is indicated on the 1838 OS 6-inch map as a square building (max. dim. c. 10m), named ‘Farragh Castle’, and it is noted in the 1838 OS Letters as follows: 'In the townland of Farragh were the ruins of a castle and bawne, the site of which should be shown on the plan.' (O’Flanagan 1927, 60). By the time of the 1929 OS 6-inch edition the building is no longer shown, and the location is marked ‘Farragh Castle (Site of)’. There is no visible trace of the castle or of the bawn (MA022-025002-). It appears to have been located on a low knoll. A stream, which was diverted around the base of the knoll at E and S, fed a mill, indicated as ‘Flax mill (in Ruins)’ on the 1929 OS 6-inch map, was located to SE of the castle, but no trace of the mill survives. Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy Date of upload: 25 April 2019

Farragh Castle was built in the 17th century, likely by a local Gaelic or Anglo-Irish family, and is remembered as a small but historically enduring structure recorded in early land surveys. Its presence on the Down Survey map indicates its significance in the post-Turner Rebellion land settlement in Ireland.

This remains an important historical record, but the official description says the monument is no longer visible or has been destroyed. The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.