Open 10:30–5:00, Tuesday – Saturday
The Bathe House at the corner of Laurence Street and Shop Street was one of the last wooden houses in Ireland and was demolished in 1824 for safety reasons, by order of the Corporation of Drogheda. It was built in 1570 for Nicholas Bathe, who came from a Norman family that had long connections with the town; one member had served as Mayor of Drogheda in 1356. Armstrong’s detailed drawing shows the Tudor-style detailing of the house front (with its Laurence Street elevation), which was built mainly of oak from Mellifont and contrasted markedly with the plain-fronted, plastered, terraced houses flanking it. The townspeople are also shown: men with walking sticks stopping to chat, a bonneted woman sitting with her basket, selling her wares, and a horse-drawn, covered wagon turning around the corner.
