Indicated — Fethard

On the S side of Main St., Fethard and slightly recessed from the general street line. The building was constructed on a slope, with the ground falling steadily to the S towards the Clashawley River. It is depicted on the Grace map of 1703 as a stylised castle with a door at ground level facing onto the Main St., and on the 1708 Grace map there is a single storey three-bay house with central chimney at this location (O'Keeffe 2003, maps 4-7). This is a modified rectangular medieval building (ext. dims. 12.5m E-W; 9.5m N-S) which retains some original features. It is built of limestone rubble roughly coursed with a base-batter on the E and W gables and S wall (H 1.08-2.3m; Wth 0.08-0.3m) and limestone quoins visible at the SE angle where the pebble-dash render has come away. The building presents as a four-bay two-storey over raised basement house with a façade (N wall T 0.7m) dating to c. 1800. A modern two-storey extension has been built onto the rear S wall. In the 19th century the present first floor was added, the upper level of the medieval masonry can be seen bulging from the E gable, with the thinner modern walling above it. Internally the floor levels have been altered, though the western end of the building, separated by a N-S cross-wall (T c. 0.3m), appears to have retained its original floor levels until 1954. At this time the western portion (Wth 4.5m E-W; W wall T c. 0.9m) was converted into a shop and extended northward into Main St. According to the present owner there had also been a stone vault over the original ground floor at the S end of the W portion of the building which was removed in 1947 (pers. comm. John Whyte, 24 April 2015). This vaulted chamber was formerly accessed via an inserted doorway at the S end of the external W wall and had been used by post office staff to store bicycles. This doorway was blocked up when the shop was built. The building was originally entered through a pointed limestone doorway (H 2.08m; Wth 1m) at the E end of the rear S wall (T 1.12m) at the original ground-floor level, currently the basement. This doorway is not chamfered, it has punch-tooling with some evidence of a drafted margin though the outer angle of the doorway is damaged. On the inner face of the S wall, immediately W of this doorway there is a roughly dressed stone corbel (H 0.23m; Wth 0.19m; D 0.09m). A modern doorway has been broken through the S end of the E gable (T 0.94m). The original floor levels where higher, as evidenced by an original first-floor limestone doorway in the cross-wall which is currently 0.82m above the present floor level. The cross-wall continues from the original ground level up to second-floor level. The doorway (H 1.66m; Wth 0.82m) in this cross-wall is currently blocked up. It has an external chamfer on the E face with a broach stop terminating the S chamfer, the N chamfer does not run-out, suggesting that the lower N jamb may be a replacement. The insertion of a floor at present first-floor level cut across the upper portion of this doorway, and two upper stones, including that at the apex of the doorway were broken out, these have been replaced in recent years. The worn threshold of this doorway is also in situ. Though currently not visible, there is a window at the E end of the S wall, originally at first-floor level, presently at second-floor level. A description by the present owner suggests that it is a two-light ogee-headed window with decorated spandrels (pers. comm. John Whyte, 20 March 2015). Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 27 April 2015