Larch Hill - Layout - Other Features

Other Features

The present car park would have been the stable and farmyard in the 19th century, and contained stables and outhouses, the remains of the foundations of these buildings can be seen adjacent to the existing toilet block.

The Mass Lawn area was originally a tennis court and is referred to as such by the locals. The altar on the mass lawn was constructed from the granite steps that led to the front door of the original house. The house was demolished in the 1970s following the completion of the existing hostel in 1972. President Éamon de Valera performed the opening ceremony for the new hostel. The existing main entrance is not in fact the original entrance. That entrance to the estate was some 20 yards (18 m) inwards and the old gateposts can still be seen.

The Ice-House (bunker like building) on the lower avenue was the original "refrigerator" for the old manor house. The river would have been blocked during the winter and blocks of ice cut and placed in the pit at the end of the building. Food was then stored in layers of straw, and the building sealed up. The building was accessed during summer by way of a hatch in the roof of the building.

The dolmen or cromlech is one of three that can be found in the vicinity, the others being on Tibradden Mountain and at Mount Venus. A dolmen was a royal burial plot and is made up of two upright granite blocks supporting a third crossways (here it has slipped out of place) and backed by a solid upright some ten feet high. The dolmen is sometimes referred to by locals as "the druids altar" or the "druids seat". An inner ring of partially submerged boulders and an outer ring of sycamore trees surround the whole feature. It is uncertain if the dolmen was ever actually completed, or whether it once stood and the top stone slipped. Some experts credit an earthquake recorded in the area in the 19th century with dislodging the stones from all the dolmens in the area. The dolmen which is a megalithic tomb is also linked to the "Battle of Kilmashogue" involving Irish Chieftains and Danish marauders. This battle is recorded in the "Annals of the Four Masters" and happened in 916 AD. It is said that the Danes were defeated in this battle, however, King Niall Glin was killed in the battle. Interestingly the river that flows through Larch Hill is called the river Glin.