Today, concrete slabs cover the well; a practical modification likely made by the current householders to keep the water clean for their own use. It’s a modest end for what was once a significant pilgrimage site, now tucked beside the road with little fanfare to mark its sacred past.

According to the folklorist Énrí Ó Muirgheasa, who documented the well in 1936, pilgrims regularly visited St. Briege’s Well until around 1900. The site held enough importance to warrant inclusion in his comprehensive survey of Donegal’s holy wells, where it appears as entry number 101. His brief description captures the well at a transitional moment, when living memory still recalled the crowds of faithful who once sought healing or blessing from its waters, even as those traditions were fading into history.

The well represents countless similar sites across Ireland where ancient ritual practices have given way to modern practicality. St. Bridget, one of Ireland’s patron saints alongside Patrick and Columba, has wells dedicated to her throughout the country, each with its own local traditions and cure stories. Whilst this particular well no longer draws pilgrims, its continued use by local residents ensures that the water St. Bridget blessed, according to tradition, still serves the community, albeit in a more mundane capacity than its sacred origins might suggest.