Local tradition holds that when the medieval castle fell into disuse, its stone fabric wasn’t simply abandoned; instead, it was supposedly incorporated into the outbuildings of the later Carstown House. Whilst historian Leslie noted this claim in 1908, followed by Tempest in 1943, no one has been able to definitively prove whether the castle’s stones truly found new life in these later structures.

What can be verified, however, are two remarkable armorial plaques that have survived in their original positions within the core of the seventeenth century house. Dating from 1612, these heraldic stones serve as tangible links to the estate’s early modern history, marking the transition from medieval fortification to more comfortable domestic architecture that characterised this period in Irish history.

The site continues to intrigue archaeologists and historians alike, having been documented in both the Archaeological Inventory of County Louth from 1986 and the subsequent Archaeological Survey published in 1991. These scholarly works have helped piece together the complex evolution of this Louth estate, where medieval and early modern histories literally built upon one another, creating layers of heritage that researchers continue to unravel today.