The rectangular ruins, measuring 12 metres north to south and 10.45 metres east to west, are now overgrown and defined by collapsed rubble walls about a metre high. This tower house was likely built by McConsava sometime after 1530, when the Irish chieftain O’Donnell burnt down his original wooden house. The stone structure was constructed partly over the northern moat of an even earlier moated site, suggesting this spot had been fortified for generations.

The McConsava family later anglicised their name to Forde, giving the castle its current name. Local tradition holds that the castle met its end around 1640 at the hands of Sir Frederick Hamilton, though the exact circumstances of its destruction remain unclear. Today, visitors can still trace the outline of the walls amongst the woodland growth, and keen eyes might spot evidence of internal divisions within the structure, though no distinctive architectural features survive.

The site offers a glimpse into the turbulent history of 16th and 17th century Leitrim, when local Irish lords built tower houses for protection whilst navigating the complex politics of Gaelic Ireland’s twilight years. The castle’s strategic position on Lough Allen would have given the McConsavas control over water traffic whilst the surrounding woodland provided both resources and concealment; a reminder of how these seemingly remote ruins once played vital roles in local power struggles.