Magherabeg

105 registered freehold parcels lie mostly in Magherabeg, from 13 m² to 311,320 m² (31.13 ha, 76.93 acres). The dashed line is the townland's boundary. 22 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.

No zone of a development plan covers Magherabeg 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.

• 28 Apr 2026Conditional

  (1) RENOVATION AND EXTENSION OF EXISTING DOMESTIC SHED TO PROVIDE A DETACHED GRANNY FLAT AND (2) DECOMMISSIONING OF EXISTING SEPTIC TANK AND REPLACEMENT OF SAME WITH NEW SEPTIC TANK AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS

  Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2660741

• 20 Aug 2025Conditional

  (1) DEMOLITION OF EXISTING DWELLING DUE TO DEFECTIVE MICA BLOCKWORK AND (2) CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW DWELLING WITH ALL ASSOCIATED WORKS AND SITE WORKS

  Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2561439

• 9 Oct 2024Conditional

  ERECTION OF A 5 BAY AGRICULTURAL SLATTED SHED WITH UNDERGROUND SLURRY STORAGE TANK AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 2461587

• 30 Sept 2024Conditional

  (1) DEMOLITION OF EXISTING DOMESTIC GARAGE AND (2) ERECTION OF A DETACHED GRANNY FLAT AND DETACHED DOMESTIC GARAGE WITH CONNECTION TO EXISTING SEPTIC TANK AND SERVICES AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS

  Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2461535

• 20 Jun 2024Conditional

  ERECTION OF AN EXTENSION TO THE SIDE AND REAR OF EXISTING DWELLING AND ALL ASSOCIATED WORKS AND SITE WORKS

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 2460934

• 20 Jan 2022N/a

  CONSTRUCTION OF A DWELLING HOUSE AND TREATMENT SYSTEM WITH TERTIARY INFILTRATION SYSTEM AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE WORKS

  Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2250054

• 20 May 2021Conditional

  ERECTION OF A SINGLE STOREY EXTENSION TO AN EXISTING DWELLING

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 2150971

• 5 Oct 2020N/a

  ERECTION OF A DWELLING WITH EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT WITH ACCESS TO COUNTRY ROAD VIA EXISTING ACCESS ROAD AND VEHICULAR ENTRANCE

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 2051442

• 3 Sept 2020Conditional

  CONSTRUCTION OF A SINGLE STOREY ENSUITE BATHROOM EXTENSION TO THE SIDE OF EXISTING DWELLING AND THE DEMOLTION OF EXISTING FRONT PORCH AND CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW FRONT PORCH WITH ASSOCIATED RAMP AND STEPS WITH CONNECTION TO THE EXISTING SEPTIC TANK

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 2051237

• 11 Aug 2020Conditional

  CONSTRUCTION OF A DWELLING WITH EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT, DOMESTIC GARAGE, ACCESS VIA AN EXISTING ACCESS ROAD ON TO THE PUBLIC ROAD AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS. A NATURA IMPACT STATEMENT (NIS) ACCOMPANIES THIS APPLICATION

  Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2051096

• 24 May 2020N/a

  CONSTRUCTION OF A DWELLING WITH EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT, DOMESTIC GARAGE, ACCESS VIA AN EXISTING ACCESS ROAD ON THE PUBLIC ROAD AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS

  Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 2050555

• 9 Dec 2019Conditional

  CONSTRUCTION OF A DWELLING WITH EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT AND DOMESTIC GARAGE AND ALL ASSOCIATED SITE DEVELOPMENT WORKS

  Permission, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 1951921

• 5 Nov 2018Unconditional

  CONSTRUCTION OF A DWELLING, DOMESTIC GARAGE, CAR PORT, TREATMENT PLANT AND ASSOCIATED SITE WORKS

  Extension of duration, 1 home · Donegal County Council, 1851686

• 23 Jul 2018Conditional

  CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW SINGLE STOREY EXTENSION CONTAINING A NEW SUNROOM (11.7M2) TO THE FRONT OF THE EXISTING DWELLING, ALONG WITH CONNECTION TO EXISTING SERVICES

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 1851131

• 17 Apr 2018Conditional

  ERECTION OF PHOTOVOLTAIC PANELS TO THE ROOF OF EXISTING AGRICULTURAL SHED AND ASSOCIATED SITE WORKS

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 1850590

• 20 Feb 2017Conditional

  IMPORTATION OF ADDITIONAL EARTH FILL TO THIS SITE IN ORDER TO IMPROVE THE LAND FOR AGRICULTURAL USE AND ASSOCIATED SITE WORKS AND RETENTION PERMISSION FOR EXISTING EARTH FILL

  Permission · Donegal County Council, 1750244

Source: National Planning Applications, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0. Applicants are not shown.

Designated sites

• Special Area of Conservation: Lough Swilly SAC 002287
• Special Protection Area: Lough Swilly SPA 004075
• Proposed Natural Heritage Area: Lough Swilly Including Big Isle, Blanket Nook & Inch Lake 000166

Recorded monuments

• DG038-020 Structure
  Description

  In 1939 Davies and Swan suggested that the site of Fahan Castle may have been located in a field close to Castletown Cottage. During the course of their survey they identified the site of a levelled structure, which they described as, 'the foundations are visible in growing corn' (Davies and Swan 1939, 204). The Donegal Survey recorded that there was no visible trace of any features which would indicate the former presence of a castle though some stones and bricks were unearthed by the landowner when cultivating a corner of the N field adjacent to the farmyard. Castletown House which is 400m S of Castletown Cottage is the more liklely location for the siting of the medieval castle (DG038-023----) and bawn (DG028-023001-). The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In this instance the entry has been been revised and updated. Compiled by Caimin O'Brien Date of upload/revision: 18 November 2011

• DG038-023 Castle - tower house
  Description

  Fahan Castle (site of): Mentioned in a grant to Sir John O'Doherty, the castle was partially dismantled in 1600 and seems to have been of little importance (Davies and Swan 1939, 204). In 1601 the castle was described as 'Over aginst the Ench [Inch] in O'Dogherty's country is a castle (DG038-023----) and a church (DG038-013001-), called the Fanne [Fahan], but broken down since our arrival. Here dwells the Bishop O'Galthar' (Atkinson 1905, 277). In the same year the castle building was described as 'a square tower surounded by a circular bawn' (Davies and Swan 1939, 204). In 1939 Davies and Swan suggested that Fahan Castle site may have been located in a field close to Castletown Cottage (DG038-020----). Castletown House which is 400m S of Castletown Cottage is the more liklely location for the siting of the medieval castle (DG038-023----) and bawn (DG028-023001-). According to the landowner around 40 years ago when making an addition to Castletown House, a vault or arches were discovered adjoining the N wall of the house. On knocking these, the head of a single-light ogee-headed window was found among the rubble. It is partly damaged and has sunken spandrels; the whole is punch dressed in 16th century fashion. It is chamfered at the rear and has a bar hole in the top of the block; it may have been re-used as a door jamb. This medieval architectural fragment may formed part of a window belonging to the medieval castle of Fahan. The vaults or arches could have been the remains of the barrel vaulted roof over the ground floor of the castle. Pre-development testing was carried out by Richard Crumlish under licence No. 07E0332 on 4 May 2007 at a site in advance of a planning application for the erection of a cow house, milking parlour, manure separator and associated works at Magherabeg, Fahan, Co. Donegal. The site was located within the archaeological constraint for the site of a castle. The monument was supposedly located in a field close to Castletown Cottage, a short distance north of the proposed development. During works in the 1940s to extend ‘Castletown’, the dwelling adjacent to the west of the proposed development, a vault or arches were discovered adjoining the north wall of the dwelling. When these were knocked down, the head of a single-light ogee-headed window was found among the rubble. This architectural fragment as well as a bullaun stone (DG038–024----) were both visible in the adjacent farmyard. Testing consisted of the excavation of five trenches, which measured 13.9m, 20.9m, 29.2m, 13.7m and 25.4m long respectively, 0.85–1.3m wide and 0.35–0.8m deep. Below the topsoil were firm grey clay, grey/orange plastic clay and grey/orange loose loamy sand. The topsoil contained modern pottery sherds. A modern water service and a number of ceramic land drains were visible in the trenches. The testing revealed natural undisturbed stratigraphy and nothing of archaeological significance (Bennett 2010, 80). The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In this instance the entry has been been revised and updated. Compiled by, Caimin O'Brien Date of upload/revision: 18 November 2011

• DG038-023001 Bawn
  Description

  Fahan Castle (site of): Mentioned in a grant to Sir John O'Doherty, the castle was partially dismantled in 1600 and seems to have been of little importance (Davies and Swan 1939, 204). In 1601 the castle was described as 'Over aginst the Ench [Inch] in O'Dogherty's country is a castle (DG038-023----) and a church (DG038-013001-), called the Fanne [Fahan], but broken down since our arrival. Here dwells the Bishop O'Galthar' (Atkinson 1905, 277). In the same year the castle building was described as 'a square tower surounded by a circular bawn' (Davies and Swan 1939, 204). Castletown House which is 400m S of Castletown Cottage is the more liklely location for the siting of the medieval castle (DG038-023) and bawn (DG028-023001-). According to the landowner around 40 years ago when making an addition to Castletown House, a vault or arches were discovered adjoining the N wall of the house. On knocking these, the head of a single-light ogee-headed window was found among the rubble. It is partly damaged and has sunken spandrels; the whole is punch dressed in 16th century fashion. It is chamfered at the rear and has a bar hole in the top of the block; it may have been re-used as a door jamb. This medieval architectural fragment may formed part of a window belonging to the medieval castle of Fahan. The vaults or arches could have been the remains of the barrel vaulted roof over the ground floor of the castle. No trace of a circular bawn has been identified amongst the group of buildings marked on the current edition of the OS 6-inch map Pre-development testing was carried out by Richard Crumlish under licence No. 07E0332 on 4 May 2007 at a site in advance of a planning application for the erection of a cow house, milking parlour, manure separator and associated works at Magherabeg, Fahan, Co. Donegal. The site was located within the archaeological constraint for the site of a castle. The monument was supposedly located in a field close to Castletown Cottage, a short distance north of the proposed development. During works in the 1940s to extend ‘Castletown’, the dwelling adjacent to the west of the proposed development, a vault or arches were discovered adjoining the north wall of the dwelling. When these were knocked down, the head of a single-light ogee-headed window was found among the rubble. This architectural fragment as well as a bullaun stone (DG038–024----) were both visible in the adjacent farmyard. Testing consisted of the excavation of five trenches, which measured 13.9m, 20.9m, 29.2m, 13.7m and 25.4m long respectively, 0.85–1.3m wide and 0.35–0.8m deep. Below the topsoil were firm grey clay, grey/orange plastic clay and grey/orange loose loamy sand. The topsoil contained modern pottery sherds. A modern water service and a number of ceramic land drains were visible in the trenches. The testing revealed natural undisturbed stratigraphy and nothing of archaeological significance (Bennett 2010, 80). The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In this instance the entry has been been revised and updated. Compiled by Caimin O'Brien Date of upload/revision: 18 November 2011

• DG038-024 Bullaun stone
  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.

• DG038-053 Midden
  Description

  Excavation licence number 01E0839. Examination of the face of a shell midden that was visible in a field boundary revealed it to be up to 33m in length and 0.6m thick. At two points, 10m and 24.5m from the northern end, the section faces were cleaned, as was the path running along the edge of the field, and samples of shell were removed from the base of the midden. At Section 2 a flint flake was recovered in the residual portion of the midden on the pathway. At 25m and 5m to the east in the adjacent field a small test-pit revealed that the midden survived under approximately 0.6m of soil. (Excavations Bulletin 2001) Peter Woodman, Department of Archaeology, University College Cork, and Nicky Milner, University of Newcastle. Described in 2001 as 'This is probably Harte's No 1 site which he recorded as 'No 1. It is at the end of the embankment near the railway station and my attention was attended to a bed of oysters and other shells lying just above the slope of the 'Boulder clay' through which the Derry and Buncrana Railway is cut, immediately at the Inch Road Station. The greater part of No 1 has been levelled down and ??? Little of it remains. It is from 18 inches to two feet thick evidently on the edge of the original mound'. The surviving midden lies at the the eastern edge of a long narrow field and is on top of a steep bank which is approximately 3 metres in height. The boundary on the northern edge of the field is defined by a fence with a series of scrub trees on the top of the slope and along the fence. The northern edge of this slope appears to have been truncated by a quarry. The shell midden is evident in the section below the wire fence and has a ledge approximately 60cms in width in front of the section. This ledge would appear to have been created by sheep. The midden can be traced running for a length of more than 33 metres to the south from the corner created by the quarry. The section was cleaned at two points - at 10 metres (Section 1) and at 24.5 metres (Section 2). In the case of section 1, the midden was 50cms thick with a dark layer represented in the top 25cms, while at section 2, the midden was 60cms thick and cut by a stone filled pit which measured 70cms across. In cleaning the edge in front of the midden at section 2 a flint flake was recovered on the surface of what might be the remnant of the midden. A test pit in the field to the east fot he field boundary revealed that at approximately 25 metres along the midden face and 5 metres from the boundary the midden still extended although the depth was unknown. Its extent in the field is also unknown. Oysters were the dominant element in this midden. C14 dating of a sample from this midden gave date of 3380+-bp'(Woodman & Milner 2001, 9-13; Milner & Woodman 2007, 104-5, No. 3). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 17 August 2010

Architectural heritage

• Bridge, 1850–1870 · Regional interest
  Description

  Single-arch bridge, built c. 1864, carrying road over the former Derry to Buncrana section of the Londonderry & Lough Swilly Railway line. Railway line now out of use with tracks removed (c. 1953). Round-headed arch with mildly rock-faced ashlar limestone voussoirs to arch having drafted margins and dressed inner faces to arch, and with roughly squared rubble stone construction to arch barrel. Randomly coursed and squared rubble stone construction to spandrels and to parapets; roughly dressed and squared rubble stone coping to parapets. Roughly squared and coursed rubble stone retaining walls aligning former railway cutting with flight of concrete steps behind retaining wall to the north-west corner. Mud deck with grass verges. Located to the south-east of Fahan, adjacent to Lough Swilly.

• Castletown, farm house, 1900–1940 · Regional interest
  Description

  Attached five-bay two-storey house, built c. 1920, with modern flat-roof extension to rear. Pitched artificial slate roof with smooth rendered chimneystacks with stepped coping and terracotta pots, and replacement rainwater goods. Smooth rendered walls. Square-headed window openings with six-over-six horned timber sash windows to first floor; paired four-over-four horned timber sash windows to ground floor and two-over-two horned timber sash window to central bay of ground floor; all with painted stone sills. Square-headed door openings with replacement timber doors and glazed overlight. Set within own grounds with farmyard complex surrounding. Low whitewashed rubble- wall with wrought-iron pedestrian gate mounted on rubble piers enclosing garden to front. Single-storey barn attached to north gable. Nineteenth century farmyard buildings arranged around yard to north-east comprising pitched slate and pitched corrugated-metal roofs, with whitewashed random rubble walls, and square-headed door openings with battened timber doors. Orchard to south with high rubble boundary wall and decorative strap-wrought-iron gates mounted on smooth rendered piers.

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).

Radon

At the centre of the townland of Magherabeg, about 1 in 10 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 moderately low, low, partly inferred. Parts of the land are made ground.

Terrain model

LiDAR of the Office of Public Works, flown in 2011, at 2 m: tile OPW_1985 (ZIP).

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.

No address of the register names Magherabeg with five sales or more. The sales of the area are on the page of Co. Donegal.

Name

Magherabeg

Area

1,244,235 m² (124.42 ha, 307.46 acres)

Civil parish

Upper Fahan, and its townlands

Barony

Inishowen West

Electoral division

Fahan, the unit of the census

Census 2022

1,634 people lived in 546 households in the Fahan electoral division. 86% of households owned their home. 42% of homes were built since 2001. 10% of dwellings stood vacant on census night, and 20% were holiday homes.

Neighbouring townlands

Castlequarter, Crislaghmore, Glebe Large, Inch Level, Tievebane

Placenames

Magherabeg 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.