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Shemy's Island is a Early Christian crannog located near Magherafelt in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Crannogs are artificial or semi-artificial islands constructed in lakes, rivers or wetlands, typically serving as defended settlements. This example sits on bedrock composed of Palaeogene extrusive rocks—ancient mafic lavas and tuffs formed during volcanic activity in the early Tertiary period—which would have risen from the surrounding waterlogged landscape to provide a natural foundation for settlement.
The crannog dates to the Early Christian period, when such structures flourished throughout Ireland as secure homesteads for farming families and their livestock. The site's location in the Magherafelt area, in the historically significant territory of mid-Ulster, reflects the strategic importance of waterside settlements in the medieval Irish landscape. Access to water for domestic use, fishing and transport, combined with natural defence, made crannogs valuable assets during this period.
Shemy's Island is protected as a scheduled monument by the Historic Environment Division under reference 12908, recognising its archaeological significance as a well-preserved example of Early Christian settlement technology and rural life. The site contributes to understanding how communities adapted to wetland environments and organised their domestic and economic activities during the early medieval period in Ulster.
Shemy's island. crannog is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 12908. View the official record →
Shemy's Island is a Early Christian crannog located near Magherafelt in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 12908.
Shemy's island. crannog dates from the e.christ. period, and is classified as a crannog. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Shemy's island. crannog 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 12908.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Standing stone (0.9 km), Enclosure (4.9 km), Crannog (5 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Shemy's island. crannog'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.
Shemy's island. crannog stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.