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Salter's Castle is a post-medieval plantation settlement comprising a castle, bawn and associated village site located near Cookstown in County Tyrone. The monument stands on bedrock of Palaeogene extrusive rocks, predominantly mafic lava and tuff, which would have presented significant challenges for construction and quarrying during the early modern period.
The site represents a planned English or Scottish plantation settlement of the sixteenth or seventeenth century, when such fortified domestic and agricultural complexes were established across Ulster. The bawn—a defensive enclosure of stone or earth—would have protected the castle, livestock and dwellings from the threat of cattle raiding and local resistance. The village layout reflects the orderly intentions of plantation colonists seeking to establish permanent settlements in the region.
Now scheduled as a historic monument under reference 13225 by the Historic Environment Division, Salter's Castle survives as physical evidence of the substantial restructuring of Ulster's landscape and settlement patterns during the plantation era. The interplay of castle, fortified yard and village demonstrates the economic and social ambitions of post-medieval planters in this part of the Sperrins region.
Salter's castle, salter'stown. plantation castle, bawn & village site is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 13225. View the official record →
Salter's Castle is a post-medieval plantation settlement comprising a castle, bawn and associated village site located near Cookstown in County Tyrone. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 13225.
Salter's castle, salter'stown. plantation castle, bawn & village site dates from the post-med period, and is classified as a settlement. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Salter's castle, salter'stown. plantation castle, bawn & village site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Ni. The official designation reference is 13225.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Counterscarp rath (2.8 km), Bivallate rath (2.9 km), Rath (3.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Salter's castle, salter'stown. plantation castle, bawn & village site's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Salter's castle, salter'stown. plantation castle, bawn & village site stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.