The claim
A thatched stone cottage in the countryside between Toome and Portglenone, the Crosskeys Inn is often called Ireland's oldest thatched pub. Tourism bodies report tree-ring dating placing the building before 1654; the listed buildings register dates its construction to between 1820 and 1839. Once a coaching stop, shop and post office, it was restored after a fire in 2000 and is known for turf fires and Saturday traditional music sessions.
What the records show
The inn brands itself as established in 1654, and that is where the date comes from; the address it used for its own site now leads to a page offering the domain for sale, so nothing it publishes can be read. Tourism NI and others cite tree-ring dating by Queen's University Belfast, reportedly in 2010, placing the building before 1654, while Wikipedia gives c.1740. No report of that dating has been traced, only accounts of it. Against those accounts stands the register. Northern Ireland's listed buildings dataset, read on 17 September 2026, holds the inn as HB07/09/011 A, grade B1, in public house use, and dates its construction to between 1820 and 1839 — later than the claim by nearly two centuries, and later even than the c.1740 Wikipedia gives. Grade B asks for fabric documented to the age claimed, and the only document traced puts the fabric far later, so the grade moves to tradition until the tree-ring report itself can be read. Use as a coaching stop, shop and post office is attested only later.
| Year | What | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1654 | Claimed founding | The pub |
| c.1654 | Present building | Dendrochronology |
What to look for inside
- Grade B1 listed thatched inn
- BBC Countryfile Magazine Country Pub of the Year 2017
- Restored after serious fire in February 2000
Visiting
The Crosskeys Inn is in Toomebridge, Northern Ireland, at 40 Grange Road, Ardnaglass, Toomebridge BT41 3QB. We do not list opening times, because they change; the pub’s own site is the place to check before you set out.
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crosskeys_Inn
- discovernorthernireland.com/listing/the-crosskeys-inn/68991101/
- www.oldest.org/entertainment/irish-pubs/
- rebelatlas.com/destinations/europe/ireland/where-is-irelands-oldest-pub-10-historic-pubs-with-a-claim-to-the-title/
- services2.arcgis.com/BdBkthNLO9mzGAMO/arcgis/rest/services/Listed_Buildings_Centroid/FeatureServer/0/query?where=HB_Ref_No+LIKE+%27HB07%2F09%2F011%25%27&outFields=HB_Ref_No%2CAddress%2CCurrentGra%2CDate_Const%2CCurrentUse%2CFormerUse&returnGeometry=false&f=html
- ratings.food.gov.uk/business/742546
Know something we don’t?Suggest a correctionLast checked Sept 2026
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