The barn was built in 1743 on the Leixlip side of the Castletown Estate. Several purposes are suggested for the unique structure: • One theory is based on the custom in
Georgian times of using doves as a delicacy when other game or animals were not in season, and suggest its use as a
dovecote. • The height of the structure would also lend itself to sport shooting, supporting another theory of its use as a shooting or gamekeepers tower. • The tower is seen from the east windows of Castletown House, so it filled that vista, possibly as a
folly. In this, it is not unlike the
Conolly Folly (an Obelisk), which was built on the estate in 1740-41. A similar structure known as
the Bottle Tower, built in imitation of the Wonderful Barn, is located in
Churchtown, close to
Rathfarnham. ==See also==