Milestone 14 Mile, Near 252 Crom Road, Newtownbutler, BT92 8GD

This is the 14-mile milestone from Enniskillen, one of a surviving collection of 12 (from an original set of 17) milestones erected between approximately 1810 and 1835 along the former mail coach road running from Enniskillen through Cavan to Dublin. It stands near 252 Crom Road, Newtownbutler, in the townland of Drumcru.

The milestone is carved from local limestone and is square in plan, standing just over 1 metre tall. It gently tapers to form an elongated prism. While the front and rear faces are flush, the side elevations are more distinctively profiled: they step outward at low level to define a base, then overhang at the top with a roll that tapers upward to a crown profile, completing what appears to be a uniquely ornate terminus. This slight variation in form from stone to stone across the series reflects the uneven, vernacular quality of work by local craftsmen. The lettering and numerals on this stone are partially legible, having sustained some damage and weathering. When intact, the stone would have displayed the distance from Enniskillen (14 Irish miles), together with 66.5 miles to Dublin and 11.5 miles to Cavan.

The section of road where this stone stands, between Enniskillen and Wattlebridge (now known as the Crom Road), was largely constructed between 1808 and 1822 specifically to provide a broad, flat road for mail coach use. The mail coach service continued to use this route, with some re-routing, until 1859, when it was superseded by the coming of the railways. The milestones therefore represent one of the few surviving physical components of the late 18th- and early 19th-century mail coach system — arguably the single most important communications network established throughout these islands before the railway age.

This particular stone is significant because it remains in its original location and retains its original form, material, and lettering. Its group value is further enhanced by the existence along the same stretch of road of a contemporary coaching inn. The collection as a whole is considered one of the most complete series of its kind in Northern Ireland.

The other surviving milestones in the series are located at the 1-mile point near 11 Lough Yoan Road, Enniskillen; the 3-mile point near 4 Gola Road, Tamlaght; the 5-mile point near 147 Farnamullan Road, Lisbellaw; the 8-mile point near 338 Gola Road, Lisnaskea (record only); the 9-mile point near Beech House, 52 Main Street, Lisnaskea; the 10-mile point at Killycrutten; the 11-mile point near 87 Crom Road, Lisnaskea; the 13-mile point near 214 Crom Road, Newtownbutler; the 15-mile point near 300 Crom Road, Newtownbutler (record only); the 16-mile point near 349 Crom Road, Newtownbutler; and the 17-mile point near 193 Wattlebridge Road, Newtownbutler.