South Watch Tower, Roe Green, Roe Valley Country Park, Largy, Limavady, Co Londonderry

The South Watch Tower is a small, stone-built watch tower dating from between 1760 and 1779. It is located at Roe Green, within Roe Valley Country Park, near Limavady, County Londonderry. The tower is a rare surviving feature associated with the linen industry and of group value, contributing to the historical landscape.

The tower stands at the south-east edge of the former Roe, or Dogleap, bleach green, situated within a thicket of trees. It is approximately two metres in diameter and 2.2 metres high to the roof edge. The roof is formed from sharply edged stones corbelled to create a flattened, segmental dome. The walls are constructed from larger, smooth-edged stones, likely sourced from the River Roe. The tower’s size only accommodates a single person. A 500mm-wide entrance slot is found on the south-west side, with small 300mm square openings positioned on the sides, one facing north-west onto the bleach green and the other facing south-east into the surrounding woodland. The tower is partly overgrown.

This tower, along with a second tower to the north (reference HB02/03/014A), were built to supervise the linen laid out on the green, protecting it from straying animals and theft. It was first indicated on the Ordnance Survey Map of 1831, and is part of the structures associated with the adjacent bleach green, established in 1766 by Lesley Alexander and closed in 1831. Unlike the other watch tower, this building appears to be original and has not been renovated. Historically, the bleach green was crossed by two millraces, a feature obscured by later landscaping. Roads shown on the 1830 and 1848 Ordnance Survey maps passed close to the tower, leading towards the mill buildings (reference HB02/03/013). The tower is a vernacular structure of industrial archaeological interest.