Ballyhealy Castle was built by Sir Richard Whitty, but it passed to the Cheevers family, of Anglo-Norman origins, through a marriage between two members of those families.
The castle was still in the hands of the Cheevers when it was confiscated and later destroyed by the Cromwellian army in 1649.
It seems that at the time of the attack, the castle had a bawn wall and four towers.
What we see today is the only surviving tower of the four.
It has been heavily rebuilt and remodeled. It's a rectangular tower measuring 7.35 metres on the east (78°) and west sides, and 9.80 metres on the north and south sides. The base has visible batters on all sides. The main doorway is in the east wall.
There are elegant windows on all sides but the west one, where the windows are just slits in the wall.
The top is crenellated, with higher corners.
Being near to the south coast of Ireland, it is likely that the tower had also served as a convenient spot to light a beacon fire on the top to guide ships along the coast.
The interiors of the castle have been recently refurbished.
It seems that today the castle is available for holiday rental.
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