What is recorded here

Ballymacool is a man-made underground passage hidden beneath a steep slope to the River Swilly in County Donegal, Ireland. It vanished from local memory without a trace, leaving behind only a ghostly cave marking on old maps. The passage may have served as a shelter, a boundary marker, or a forgotten entrance to another world. Its absence makes the land feel both ordinary and haunted, as if the earth swallowed a room and kept the secret.

The 1st and 2nd editions of the OS 6-inch maps mark a 'Cave' here. There is now no sign or local tradition of it. The site is located on a fairly steep slope to the River Swilly in very good land. The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated. Date of upload: 22 September 2008

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.