The castle’s history stretches back to at least the 16th century, when the lands around it were controlled by Tintern Abbey. In 1541, when Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries, the abbey was leasing 30 acres at Ballygarvy to one John Power. The castle itself was reputedly built by the Rossiter family of Slevoy, though the exact date of its construction remains unclear.

By 1640, according to the Civil Survey conducted between 1654 and 1656, the castle had already fallen into decay. At that time, Sir Caesar Colclough owned the ruined fortress along with 240 acres of surrounding land. The Colcloughs were a prominent Anglo-Norman family who held considerable estates throughout Wexford during this period. Valentine Gill’s detailed map of Wexford from 1811, now housed in Enniscorthy’s Castle Museum, still marked the site as a ruin, suggesting it had been abandoned for quite some time by the early 19th century.

Today, what remains of Ballygarvan Castle sits within a working farmyard on a gentle east-facing slope. Though archaeological records confirm its location, centuries of decay and agricultural activity have reduced this once-substantial fortress to foundations and rubble barely distinguishable from the surrounding landscape. It stands as one of many lost castles dotting the Wexford countryside; silent witnesses to the county’s turbulent medieval and early modern history.