Local tradition claims St. Patrick himself founded this sacred place, and whilst that cannot be verified, the collection of monuments within certainly speaks to its long spiritual significance. Just outside the graveyard entrance stands a tall, plain high cross with a distinctive ring, welcoming visitors to this ancient Christian site.

Inside the graveyard walls, the remains tell a story of continuous worship spanning centuries. Two ruined churches occupy the space, one of which served as the medieval parish church for the local community. Between them sits what archaeologists believe to be a mortuary house or tomb shrine, a structure that would have held particular reverence for medieval pilgrims. Near the northwest corner of this mortuary house stands a modest but significant cross-inscribed slab, measuring just 0.8 metres high and 0.46 metres wide. The slab bears a Latin cross with bar terminals and the upper portion of a central ring carved into its eastern face, a style typical of early Irish Christian art.

The site contains other intriguing features that hint at ritual use; east of the mortuary house lies a small basin stone that may be a bullaun, those mysterious cup-marked stones found at many Irish holy sites and often associated with healing traditions. Archaeological surveys have carefully documented each element, with the Cooley Cross Heritage Committee creating detailed plans that map out the locations of all nine significant features within the graveyard. This careful preservation of knowledge ensures that future generations can appreciate how these scattered stones once formed a thriving centre of medieval Irish Christianity.