This archaeological site, first spotted by researchers P. Woodman and B. MacNaught during field walking exercises, sits on what locals believe was once the eastern shoreline of Lough Swilly before extensive land reclamation transformed the landscape. The midden’s location in low-lying ground has preserved layers of history, though sadly, modern development has taken its toll; an access road for a housing development has carved through the eastern portion of the monument, inadvertently creating a cross-section that reveals its inner structure.

What remains visible today offers a fascinating glimpse into prehistoric life. The exposed section, measuring roughly 3.3 metres in length, contains tightly packed oyster shells mixed with other shellfish remains, burnt stones, and tiny bone fragments, all held within a matrix of blackened, burnt soil. The shells extend up to 35cm above the current ground level and reach about 55cm below the original surface. Two additional patches of concentrated shells can be spotted on the levelled ground where part of the midden once stood. Fields surrounding the site are scattered with individual oyster shells, and previous surveys have turned up Mesolithic and Neolithic flints, suggesting this area saw human activity across multiple prehistoric periods.

By 2001, when archaeologists conducted a more thorough investigation, only a narrow strip of the midden survived intact, confined to a field boundary marked by scrub and mature trees. Radiocarbon dating of shell samples revealed an age of 3,930 years before present, placing the midden firmly in the Bronze Age. The site’s significance extends beyond just this single feature; the surrounding landscape has yielded early Mesolithic tools from a flat terrace overlooking the reclaimed lands and Lough Swilly, whilst later prehistoric artefacts have been discovered to the north, painting a picture of thousands of years of human occupation along this ancient shoreline.