Creevy Lower

Image: © Kenneth Allen Taken: 19 Apr 2007

It is to the north of Castlederg. There are numerous stone walls enclosing fields in this district. Stone ditches like the one pictured here are a common feature in parts of the British Isles. In Ireland, most of them date from famine years, or earlier. They were originally built from what stone came to hand during field clearance, as few were important or valuable enough to merit the transportation of stones from a quarry. The erection of stone ditches achieved at least five aims, first to clear areas of land, which could then be ploughed to produce crops, secondly to sub-divide areas of countryside into workable sized fields, thirdly to separate tenant farmer land from commonage, fourthly in the famine time the work gave hungry people employment and some opportunity to buy food, it is worth of note how the best examples of stone ditches are found in areas where the landlords were sympathetic to the needs of the people, and fifthly the stone ditches were an indication of the type of terrain in an area.

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