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Record of Protected Structures

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All Local Authorities in Ireland are required to produce and maintain a Record of Protected Structures under the Planning & Development Act 2000. The purpose of the Record of Protected Structures is to protect structures, or parts of structures “which form part of the architectural heritage and which are of special architectural, historical, archaeological, artistic, cultural, scientific, social or technical interest.” The first Record of Protected Structures for County Donegal was adopted by the Elected Members of Donegal County Council on December 1, 2003 and contained 320 structures. Additions were made to the Record of Protected Structures for County Donegal in December 2007. 

Type                         
Number   
Percentage  
Churches 
106 
33% 
Houses 
103 
32% 
Bridges 
16 
5% 
Mill Houses 
11 
3% 
Vernacular Cottages 
10 
3% 
Watchtowers 
6 
2% 
Lighthouses 
5 
2% 
Schools 
5 
2% 
Warehouses 
5 
2% 
Other 
53 
17% 

Of the 106 churches on the first Record of Protected Structures for County Donegal, 41% are Catholic, 35% are Church of Ireland, 20% are Presbyterian, and 3% are Methodist.

Other ecclesiastical structures on the list include the Bishop’s Palace (Raphoe), four rectories and a convent.

Among the other structures on the list are courthouses, public houses, banks, forts, Martello towers, gate lodges, halls, lighthouse keepers’ cottages, coastguard stations, and hotels.

Some of the more unusual structures on the list include a “carved limestone and pink granite World War I memorial mounted on boundary wall” in Pettigo and a “freestanding milestone to roadside built c. 1850, with distance to Ramelton and to Dunfanaghy inscribed on it” in Ramelton. 

In some instances, structures of architectural heritage are considered to be of archaeological merit and included on both the Record of Monuments & Places (RMP) and the Record of Protected Structures (RPS). 

This means that these structures are protected by both the National Monuments Acts (1930-2004) & the Planning and Development Act (2000).  

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