This low-lying, north-facing area of marshy pasture holds little visible evidence of the fortification that once stood here, though local knowledge and historical records confirm its existence. The castle belonged to Teige McMurrough O’Brien in 1574, a member of one of Ireland’s most influential Gaelic families, but by 1639 it had already fallen into ruin, suggesting a relatively short period of active use during a turbulent era of Irish history.

Today, visitors to the site would struggle to identify any obvious castle remains without local guidance. The rectangular building that later occupied the site, known as Ballagh House on the 1840 Ordnance Survey maps, has itself largely vanished. What survives are intermittent traces of its walls, now incorporated into field boundaries where they stand out as notably more regular sections of stonework compared to the typical dry-stone walls of the area. These remnants represent layers of history; medieval castle stones likely reused in a later house, which in turn became part of the agricultural landscape.

Archaeological surveys by Risteárd Ua Cróinín and Martin Breen have documented several dressed limestone blocks scattered throughout the vicinity, with some incorporated into a nearby farmhouse. These carefully worked stones probably originated from the castle itself, representing the practice of recycling building materials that has occurred throughout Irish history. While Ballagh Castle may lack the dramatic ruins found at other Irish castle sites, its story reflects the common fate of many smaller fortifications: abandonment, decay, and eventual absorption into the surrounding landscape, leaving only subtle clues and local memory to mark where power once resided.