Melmore
Melmore is a townland in the civil parish of Mevagh, barony of Kilmacrenan, Co. Donegal. Its name in Irish is An Meall Mór.
- Area
- 161 ha
- 398 acres
- Land parcels
- 18
- registered freehold, median 9,793 m² (0.98 ha, 2.42 acres)
- Zoning
- —
- not in a zoned settlement
- Planning
- 4
- applications since 2010
Land parcels
Registered freehold land, Tailte Éireann
18 registered freehold parcels lie mostly in Melmore, from 961 m² to 264,383 m² (26.44 ha, 65.33 acres). The dashed line is the townland's boundary. 6 neighbouring parcels touch it.
Download the townland as DXF, in Irish Transverse Mercator metres, with its boundary, parcels and buildings, or as GeoJSON or KML.
Zoning
Development plans, national zoning
No zone of a development plan covers Melmore in the national zoning. Outside zoned towns and villages, the county development plan's rural policies apply to each application.
Source: Tailte Éireann and the Department of Housing (MyPlan), national zoning, CC BY 4.0.
Planning applications
Sites that touch the townland, newest first
24 Nov 2025Conditional
(1) STEEL FRAMED STORAGE SHED, (2) INSTALLATION OF EXISTING SEPTIC TANK IN NEW LOCATION SERVING EXISTING VACANT DERELICT DWELLING, (3) ACCESS LANEWAY TO UPPER SITE, (4) CONCRETE SURFACING ONTO LOWER SLOPE OF EXISTING LANEWAY, (5) VISITOR’S CAR PARK WITH ASSOCIATED SIGNAGE, VEHICLE BARRIERS AND GATE, (6) 2 NO. PORTALOOS LOCATED IN VISITOR’S CAR PARK AND (7) SITE OFFICE AND PERMISSION FOR (1) INSTALLATION OF A NEW ON-SITE FOUL WASTE SECONDARY TREATMENT TANK WITH PUMP STATION AND CONSTRUCTION OF A TERTIARY REED BED AND DISCHARGE WETLAND AREA, (2) CONSTRUCTION OF NEW ENTRANCE WALLS AND PILLARS WITH A NEW REPLACEMENT GATE TO EXISTING ENTRANCE SERVING EXISTING COTTAGE AND (3) ALL ASSOCIATED SITE WORKS
Retention · Donegal County Council, 2562050
8 Feb 2022Conditional
DEMOLITION OF EXISTING DWELLING HOUSE AND CONSTRUCTION OF REPLACEMENT DWELLING WITH ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS
Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2250184
15 Dec 2021N/a
DEMOLITION OF EXISTING DWELLING AND ERECTION OF A REPLACEMENT DWELLING HOUSE WITH ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS
Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2152516
16 Mar 2020Unconditional
DEVELOPMENT AT MELMORE CARAVAN PARK CONSISTING OF (A) INSTALLATION OF AN EFFLUENT HOLDING TANK WITH PUMP STATION (B) CONSTRUCTION OF A REEDBED AND WETLAND AREA AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE WORKS
Extension of duration · Donegal County Council, 2050367
Source: National Planning Applications, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0. Applicants are not shown.
Nature and heritage
Designated sites and recorded monuments
Designated sites
- Special Area of Conservation: Tranarossan and Melmore Lough SAC 000194
- Special Area of Conservation: Mulroy Bay SAC 002159
- Special Protection Area: Horn Head to Fanad Head SPA 004194
- Proposed Natural Heritage Area: Tranarossan And Melmore Lough 000194
Recorded monuments
- DG007-004 Promontory fort - coastal
Description
The Archaeological Survey of Ireland (ASI) is in the process of providing information on all monuments on The Historic Environment Viewer (HEV). Currently the information for this record has not been uploaded. To access available information for research purposes please make an appointment in advance with the Archive Unit (open Fridays 10.00 am – 5.00 pm), Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, The Custom House, Dublin 1 D01W6XO or email NMarchive@housing.gov.ie.
- DG008-027 Signal tower
Description
Situated on a moderate slope that descends to the N before reaching steep slopes and cliffs to the E (48m OD). The surrounding area consists of open rough pasture with a collapsed stock-control rubble wall running close to the steep slopes and cliffs to the N, E and W. The site has unobstructed views in all directions except to the S, where the rising ground blocks the view. This signal tower was original built to be intervisible from the signal towers at Horn Head (DG023-005----), now partially collapsed, located c. 12.8kms to the WSW; and the site of signal tower at Fanad Head (DG009-012----), now demolished and replaced by a lighthouse, which is located 10.1kms to the ENE. Site lies c. 100m to the S of a promontory fort (DG008-030----), which is located at the tip of Melmore Head. Originally a two-storey square-plan signal tower (ext. dims. 5.8m N-S x 5.8m E-W) constructed of rubble stone masonry. The signal tower is now collapsed and consists mainly of foundations with a small section of intact wall surviving along the W side, and a slightly more intact section of wall surviving to the E side. The outer face of the surviving W section of the wall features a pronounced batter. At the S of the W portions of the foundations, small rubble stone buttresses have been built up against the outer wall face. A narrow pillar of stonework extends upwards from the middle of the E wall, which appears to be the remains of the pillar between two ground floor windows. The rest of the base of the signal tower is concealed by a dense spread of rubble stone. The rubble from the collapsed signal tower is present on all sides of the tower base. It extends furthest to the N suggesting the signal tower collapsed in that direction, falling down the slope. A small section of mortared brick work is visible amongst the collapsed rubble. The signal tower is located in the centre of a rectangular rubble stone enclosure. The enclosure wall is largely collapsed. The low foundations of two small rectangular buildings are located within the enclosure, one against the SE corner, the other against the SW corner. The foundation in the SE corner of the enclosure consists of grassed-over wall footings with frequent visible stonework (int. dims. 7m x 1.45m). This building is shown on the 1st edition Ordnance Survey map, surveyed 1834-6, suggesting the building may have been occupied at the same time as the signal tower. The building in the SW corner of the enclosure consists of a grassed over earthen bank with frequent protruding stones (int. dims. 3.35m x 1.7m). This building is not shown on the 1st edition Ordnance Survey map suggesting the building was possibly a later addition to the site. The SE and SW corners of the enclosure are connected to the long stock-control wall, which runs off for a considerable distance to the SE and SW. The signal tower was part of a system of over 80 signal stations constructed by the British Board of Ordnance in the first decade of the 19th century to warn of the approach of a French invasion fleet. Signalling between sites was accomplished using a naval signal post. The system formed a continuous chain from Dublin Bay running clockwise all the way around the coast to Malin Head in County Donegal. It was abandoned by the mid-1810s when the threat of a French invasion diminished (Kerrigan 1995, 157-66). Compiled by: Stuart Rathbone Date of upload: 13/08/21 Images: DG008-027----.01.jpg View from N DG008-027----.02.jpg View of the E wall from W DG008-027----.03.jpg View of N elevation from S DG008-027----.04.jpg NE corner from NW DG008-027----.05.jpg SE corner from SW DG008-027----.06.jpg SW corner from SW DG008-027----.07.jpg W elevation DG008-027----.08.jpg Remains of building to SE from N. DG008-027----.09.jpg Remains of building to the SW from N DG008-027----.10.jpg Remains of building to the SW from NE DG008-027----.11.jpg Remains of enclosure wall to S DG008-027----.12.jpg Field wall to site
- DG008-030 Promontory fort - coastal
Description
The Archaeological Survey of Ireland (ASI) is in the process of providing information on all monuments on The Historic Environment Viewer (HEV). Currently the information for this record has not been uploaded. To access available information for research purposes please make an appointment in advance with the Archive Unit (open Fridays 10.00 am – 5.00 pm), Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, The Custom House, Dublin 1 D01W6XO or email NMarchive@housing.gov.ie.
- DG008-032 Promontory fort - coastal
Description
The Archaeological Survey of Ireland (ASI) is in the process of providing information on all monuments on The Historic Environment Viewer (HEV). Currently the information for this record has not been uploaded. To access available information for research purposes please make an appointment in advance with the Archive Unit (open Fridays 10.00 am – 5.00 pm), Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, The Custom House, Dublin 1 D01W6XO or email NMarchive@housing.gov.ie.
Architectural heritage
No building of the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage stands in the townland of Melmore.
Designated sites: National Parks and Wildlife Service. Recorded monuments: Sites and Monuments Record, National Monuments Service. Buildings: National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0. Works at or in relation to a recorded monument need two months' written notice to the National Monuments Service (National Monuments (Amendment) Act 1994, section 12).
Ground and risks
Radon, landslides, flooding
- Radon
- At the centre of the townland of Melmore, about 1 in 5 homes in this area is likely to have high radon levels. Testing a home
- Landslides
- The 1:50,000 map rates the landslide susceptibility here as high, moderately high, moderately low, low, partly inferred. Parts of the land are water.
- Terrain model
- No LiDAR survey of the Office of Public Works covers the centre of the townland of Melmore.
- Flooding
- The Office of Public Works publishes its flood maps on floodinfo.ie.
Radon Risk Map of Ireland, Environmental Protection Agency, and Landslide Susceptibility Classification, Geological Survey Ireland, both under CC BY 4.0. LiDAR: contains Irish Public Sector Data (Geological Survey Ireland & the Office of Public Works) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.
Homes sold
Property Price Register
No address of the register names Melmore with five sales or more. The sales of the area are on the page of Co. Donegal.
The townland
- Name
- Melmore · An Meall Mór
- Area
- 1,609,516 m² (160.95 ha, 397.72 acres)
- Civil parish
- Mevagh, and its townlands
- Barony
- Kilmacrenan
- Electoral division
- Rosguill, the unit of the census
- Census 2022
- 856 people lived in 321 households in the Rosguill electoral division. 77% of households owned their home. 31% of homes were built since 2001. 5% of dwellings stood vacant on census night, and 58% were holiday homes.
- Neighbouring townlands
- Gortnalughoge
- Gaeltacht
- In an Irish-speaking area
- Placenames
- Melmore on logainm.ie, the Placenames Database of Ireland
Townlands, civil parishes, baronies and electoral divisions, National Statutory Boundaries, Tailte Éireann, CC BY 4.0. Census 2022, Small Area Population Statistics by electoral division, Central Statistics Office, CC BY 4.0. A townland is the smallest land division of Ireland, and the unit of a rural address. Old registers such as the 1901 and 1911 censuses file it under its civil parish and barony.