Spire of Lloyd
About
About 2 km west of the town on the R163, the Spire of Lloyd, which plenty of people in Kells still call the Tower of Lloyd, is an inland lighthouse: a tall stone column with a lantern on top, designed by Henry Aaron Baker in 1791 for Thomas Taylour, first Earl of Bective, in memory of his father. The tourist office says it gave work during a local famine and was a statement of the Headfort family's power. Inside is a 164-step spiral stair with a protective cage, and from the top, on a clear day, the view reaches the Mourne Mountains. The hill it stands on was a hillfort long before the Taylours; the Courthouse's notes say geophysical survey has found concentric ditches around the summit. The People's Park around it is free and open, with a playground beside the car park, a famine paupers' graveyard and the Ringfort and Blackwater River looped walk. The inside of the tower is only open on tours: three on Fridays in the summer season, at 12, 1.30 and 2.30, run by the Courthouse. The tours were closed for winter when this was written.
Photos
Highlights
- ✓164 steps to the lantern on a summer Friday tour
- ✓A view to the Mournes on a clear day
- ✓The famine paupers' graveyard in the People's Park
- ✓A playground and free parking beside the tower
Tips
- →The park and the outside of the tower are open any time. The inside is tours only, on Fridays in the summer season.
- →Tours were closed for the winter season in November 2026. Ring the Courthouse on 046 924 7508 to check the restart date.
- →The hill is exposed. Bring a layer even on a fine day.
Best Season
More Heritage Activities
Kells Monastic Site: the Round Tower and High Crosses
The round tower and three high crosses in St Columba's churchyard, the heart of the Columban monastery that kept the Book of Kells. Free to walk round; the tower cannot be climbed.
St Colmcille's House
A steep-roofed early stone church at the top of Church Lane, possibly the oldest building in Kells. Locked; the Courthouse opens it with a day's notice.