Birr — Townparks (ballybrit By.)

Birr is situated in the low-lying fertile valley of the Little Brosna River. The town developed SE of the castle (OF035-012004-) and within the bounds of a pronounced meander in the River Camcor. The Camcor joins the Little Brosna to NW of the town. St Brendan reputedly established a monastery (OF035-012001/003-) here in the 6th century which subsequently became a prestigious and influential foundation and one of the most celebrated members of St Columcille's great federation of churches. Located in the border area between the provinces of Munster, Meath, Leinster and Connacht and itself located in the territory of Eile in Munster, the monastic settlement was frequently chosen as a venue for the meetings of both kings and churchmen, perhaps the most significant of which were the synods of AD 697 and 1174. An Anglo-Norman castle (OF035-012009-) and settlement had been established at Birr by 1207 and continued at least until c. 1315. By the mid-14th century the settlement had reverted to the O'Carrolls of Ely. The 'Black Castle' (OF035-012010) became one of the principal seats of the ruling branch of that dynasty and remained as such until its sale to Butler of Ormond in 1594. In 1621 as part of the Plantation of Ely O'Carroll, Laurence Parsons was granted the lands, 'castle and fortilage' of Birr which became the manor of Parsonstown and a new castle (OF035-012004-) was erected by the Parsons family. It was from this time and under Laurence Parsons' direction that Birr began to develop as a true town. In 1621 he obtained a grant of a Tuesady market and two annual fairs, to which were added a Saturday market and two more fairs in 1627. He rigorously imposed a number of bye laws in 1626-7 for the paving and cleaning of the town, for the erection of chimneys and the regulation of drinking houses. Such was the steady pace of its development and its pleasing appearance that by 1633, John Bramhall, writing to Lord Deputy Thomas Wentworth, declared that Parsonstown 'is the only town that I have found yet in all my journey fit to accommodate a traveller, having trademsen in it of all kinds' (Loeber 1988). Although virtually razed by the Confederate forces in 1642, the town recovered after the Restoration and by 1672 it had been established as a borough, returning two members to Parliament. A map of Birr made by Michael Richards in 1691 indicates that the town was esentially linear in plan, a layout which is preserved in Main St. with a subtriangular market place with a market house (OF035-012018) at the S end near the bridge (OF035-012006-). Castle St. is shown running off the Market Square with Mill Lane, Shamble Lane and Fayle's Lane leading off Maint St. to E and W. Richards also shows town defences (OF035-012007-) on his plan, the N wall running from William St. to the junction of Emmet St. the present day Spinner's Lane marking its original line. The Square was fortified with two bastions one of which possibly stood at the N end of Spinner's Lane and the other at the point where Emmet St. meets the Square. At this bastion the town wall turned S terminating on this side at a rectangular tower lying between Chapel Lane and the mill race. Ot has been suggested that portion of the town wall defences at SE are incorporated into the fabric of a later wall running from the SE end of Brendan St. towards the Manor Saw Mill. The southern defences followed the line of what is now Mill Lane. Moving W of the river, there was an additional stretch of walling which terminated in yet another bastion. With the castle (OF035-012004-) and the church (OF035-012001-) positioned in this quarter of the town and their need for protection, the western defences were reinforced with earthen embankments. Aside from the castle and church which are described elsewhere in this volume, 17th century records note additional monuments at Birr. There was a masonry bridge (OF035-012006-) crossing the River Camcor as early as 1626 which was replaced by the present structure of mid-18th century origin, and according to Cooke (1875, 45) there was a second 17th-century bridge (OF035-012014) near the castle in the vicinity of St Brendan's holy well (OF035-012005-). There was also a market cross (OF035-012015) in the town which was erected in c. 1625, a tuck mill (OF035-012017), two grist mills, five watermills (OF035-012011) and as early as 1626 a Free School (OF035-012016). A gaol (OF035-012012) is marked on Richard's plan of 1691. The survival of 17th-century domestic houses in the town is difficult to ascertain fully because the present buildings in what were the principal residential areas of the town in 1691 - Main St. and Market Square have been altered and rendered. However, several of these narrow three-storey houses are esentially 17th-century buildings, their facades added later in the 18th century. Two positively identified 17th-century which are characteristically stone-built narrow and with pitched roofs and one which carries a date of 1679 (OF035-012013), occur on the corner of Market Square and Brendan St. Another four houses, two immediately N of the above, one of which was refurbished c. 1780 by Samuel Abbot and the others on Fayle's Lane and Church Lane, may also be included. (Cooke 1875, 37-88, Bradley 1986, 20-29; Loeber Survey 1988). Dominic Delany (Excavations 1997, No. 445, 97E0352) carried out test excavations almost directly opposite the current development site, on the eastern side of Main Street, prior to the extension of the supermarket at this location. Four test-trenches were excavated. No features or finds of definite medieval date were uncovered. A possible paving layer was revealed in Trench 4, probably post-medieval. When taken in conjunction with the findings from across the road (Excavations 1997, No. 445), the paving layer is probably of 18th-century date. At the time of testing, the formation levels of the construction had not been finalised. Test-trenching was undertaken in 1999 by John Tierney under licence no. 99E0758 at the request of the client in order to satisfy planning requirements prior to development. This derelict site, lying within Birr's zone of archaeological potential, was fronted by the façades of a number of houses. Documentary research demonstrated that Church Street had been occupied by standing houses since at least the 17th century while also suggesting that the route may have been a relict of the early medieval enclosure of St Brendan's ecclesiastical settlement. On this site the client wished to construct three townhouses while retaining the façades of the original structures. The maximum depth of construction activity was 0.6m, while the ground level was to be raised by 0.1m. Four test-trenches were opened to a depth of 0.8m. These were located in the north-west and north-east corners, on a north-south axis, and along the southern foundation line. The deposits uncovered in these trenches were modern, and to this extent development would not have had a negative impact on any archaeological deposits. A test excavation was carried out in 2000 by Kenneth Wiggins under licence no. 00E0228 at Chapel Street on a small site where the construction of a terrace of three townhouses was proposed. Two trial cuttings were mechanically excavated on 14 April 2000. The excavation revealed two walls relating to 19th-century cottages that formerly occupied the site, but no archaeological features pre-dating this period were uncovered. Rubble derived from the demolition of the cottages was present on the site, and there was much artefactual material of modern origin in this debris. An assessment was carried out under licence no, 02E0322 at 23 Main Street, Birr, Co. Offaly. Three trenches were excavated: Trench 1 in the ground floor of the shop, and Trenches 2 and 3 in the yard to the rear. Trench 1 was excavated by hand in the middle of the shop floor. It measured 1m by 1m and was dug to a maximum depth of 0.5m. The floor of pine square-cut plank