These estates were granted to Lord Aubignie in 1611, marking the beginning of a series of ownership changes that would shape the local landscape. The land eventually came into the possession of James Hamilton before passing to Sir Henry Piers, an ambitious landowner who would leave his mark on the area through substantial construction projects.

Sir Henry Piers transformed his holdings by building a fortified bawn, a castle, and establishing a town that he named Pierscourt after himself. This settlement would later become known as Shercock, the name by which it’s recognised today. The bawn, a defensive wall typical of plantation settlements, would have enclosed the castle and provided protection for the settlers during a turbulent period of Irish history. These structures represented not just personal dwellings but symbols of the new order being imposed across Ulster during the plantation period.

According to Ordnance Survey maps from the 19th century, the castle is believed to have occupied the site where the Roman Catholic church now stands, with the church having been constructed sometime after 1835. Today, visitors to Shercock will find no visible traces of either the castle or the bawn that once dominated the landscape; time and development have erased these physical reminders of the plantation era. The transformation from Pierscourt to Shercock, and from Protestant stronghold to Catholic church site, reflects the complex layers of Irish history that characterise so many towns across County Cavan.