White fort The area around Drumaroad, between
Slieve Croob and
Dundrum Bay, is known for its many old stone or earth-built forts. A comprehensive excavation was conducted at White Fort by Dudley Waterman in 1953 that was published in the Ulster Journal of Archaeology in 1956. The excavation revealed both a house and an underground passage (
souterrain) within the fort. The house had two main construction phases. In the first phase, a platform about 25 feet square was built using loose
gravelly soil. This platform served as the house's foundation. A layer of charcoal, including burnt sticks, indicated where people lived. This layer contained many pieces of pottery and an iron
plough-coulter. Three post-holes were found, suggesting the house was square. The exact structure of the house is unclear, but the floor's limits suggest a square shape. In the second phase, a stone curb was added to stabilize the platform. This stone border enclosed an area of at least 26 feet square. The house had a paved floor made of flat stones, which was well-preserved in the western half. The entrance was on the south side, with two post-holes supporting the door frame. Four internal posts supported the roof, and a stone-lined
hearth was in the centre of the house. A trench north of the house, likely intended as an underground passage, was discovered. This trench was filled with stone rubble and soil, indicating it was never completed. It may have been meant to provide an underground passage next to the house. It likely remained an open trench for some time before being filled. Additional evidence of occupation was found northeast of the trench, including a stone-built hearth and paving. Various artifacts were recovered, such as pottery, an iron plough-coulter, a glass bead, a piece of a shale bracelet, a
spindle-whorl,
flint flakes, and
quern stones. The house likely had mud walls and a
thatched roof supported by internal posts. The reconstruction suggests a
clearstorey for light and ventilation. The walls were probably about 20 inches thick, with a low bench inside. The excavation provided a complete layout of a small agricultural house from the latter part of the
first millennium. The findings highlight the variety of living sites in Ulster during the Dark Ages and offer valuable insights into the domestic architecture and farming practices of that time.
Carnreagh Fort At the southern end of a high ridge, Carnreagh Fort is part of a group of three enclosures. The platform, with steep sides, is set in pasture land and measures about 29 meters from north to south and 24 meters from east to west. It stands 2.7 meters high on the east and west sides, and 2 meters high on the north and south sides. The top is covered in thick brambles and blackthorn. An earlier survey found signs of a stone structure in the center, but there is no clear entrance. There is also no visible evidence of a surrounding bank or ditch, except for a narrow field drain at the north. When revisited in 2000, the site was still in good condition but covered in dense thorns. ===Curious find under
cromlech near Drumca=== Drumca is the old parish name for Drumaroad & Clough. The following is an excerpt from the Newtownards Chronicle newspaper (1873-1900) and published on 26th April 1890. It recounts the discovery of a grave by a farmer in Drumaroad while clearing one of his fields. It contained the bones of a large man and an intricately crafted urn. "CUROIUS FIND IN THE COUNTY DOWN Lately Mr. Burke, a respectable farmer, who lives at Drumca near Seaforde, County Down, was overhauling a corner of one of his fields, which was entirely of stones, intermingled with hazel shrubs. On removing the debris of stones, Mr. Burke came upon a large stone upwards of two tons in weight, and on this stone being removed immediately beneath it was find a grave and the bones of a man, of what would appear to be of Herculean size. Beside the bones lay and urn of curious workmanship, beaded round. The grave was surrounded by four hewn stones. Since the find the grave has been visited by many of the curious, and the bones and urn are a present in the hands of an antiquarian. We may add that the English of Drumca signifies
the hill of the bloody strife." ==Gallery==