Indicated — Newtown (rathdown By.)

Mass-house recorded by James Kyle  in 2003 while carrying out an archaeological survey of the lands at Newtown and Glencullen.  Structure described by James Kyle as follows; 'an inspection was made of the Mass House structure, a historically significant feature, located adjacent to the Maguire family farmyard, in Newtown townland.  The Mass House itself is a north-south oriented rectangular structure, constructed of randomly course granite blocks, whose northeastern corner was open as a result of design or collapse or both. Externally no features were obvious with the sole exception to that being the 1737 datestone, which was located externally on the northwestern corner of the structure. The year and indeed a set of initials ‘TL’ can be discerned on this rectangular stone, but a note of caution should be employed when ascribing the date and indeed the stone itself to the structure; the only mortar remnants observed inside or outside the Mass House were present externally on the structure, around this stone, an observation which reinforces the Maguire family’s assertion that the datestone is a later insertion to the structure.  Internally there were no obvious features or evidence thereof, with the surface of the interior being grass covered collapse from the walls, which survive to a maximum height of 2m externally in the northwestern corner of the structure. The walls were of a uniform width (0.5m) and internally the Mass House measures 8.5m north-south x 4.5m east-west, however the Mass House only represents one room of a larger structure, with the southern wall of the makeshift church forming part of the northern wall of a second room, which was east-west in its orientation. This second room measured 11.6m east-west x 3.6m north-south and whilst it was open at its eastern end, a granite-built fireplace, measuring 1.3m in width was noted internally on the western wall and the remains of a possible doorway were present in the southern wall of the room. The walls of the Mass House and this second room would appear were a contemporary construction and therefore both rooms were part of the same structure, which was either later medieval or early post-medieval in date, whose eastern wall is no longer extant. The implication is that a pre-existing structure was converted to become the Mass House at some point during the period of the Penal Laws.  The presence of the fireplace in the east-west room suggests that the structure was domestic in nature originally, and that by the time of its use as a Mass House it was no longer in use as such. It is therefore tempting to suggest that this may have been the original incarnation of Newtown House, prior to the construction of the current version of Newtown House, which the Maguire family now live in, 50m to the north. Daniel Maguire kindly imparted further detail regarding the Mass House, that it was thatched during his grandfather’s time (as reported by Rev. Smyth) and that his grandmother recalled travelling to Mass in the structure from her home in Roundwood, County Wicklow. Additionally, the Mass House has been used in recent times to perform wedding ceremonies' (Kyle 2023, 37-40).     Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien based on details provided by James Kyle