Known as the ‘Giant’s Grave’, this feature appeared on the 1835 edition of the Ordnance Survey 6-inch map and was shown, though not labelled, on the 1848-9 edition. The site near Cranford represents one of those tantalising archaeological mysteries where the physical evidence has been lost to time, but the documentary trail hints at something significant that once existed.

The only official record comes from an Ordnance Survey Name Book dating to 1834-5, which mentions the Giant’s Grave but frustratingly provides no details about its appearance, construction, or purpose. This lack of description leaves us guessing about what type of megalithic tomb it might have been; whether it was a portal tomb, court tomb, or perhaps a wedge tomb, all of which are found elsewhere in Donegal. The name ‘Giant’s Grave’ was commonly applied to prehistoric monuments across Ireland, reflecting local folklore that attributed these ancient structures to mythical giants rather than to the Neolithic farmers who actually built them.

Today, anyone searching for this monument would find no trace of it in the Cranford area, making it impossible to classify the tomb type or understand its original form. Its complete disappearance sometime after the mid-19th century serves as a reminder of how many prehistoric monuments have been lost to agricultural improvement, stone robbing, and development over the past two centuries. The Giant’s Grave of Kilmacrenan joins a long list of Irish megalithic sites known only through historical records, their stones scattered or buried, their stories incomplete.