The bridge at Golden, which straddles an island in the River Suir, was the scene of an event of some significance in 1690, when King William III renewed, by letter in his own hand, the Royal Charter of the city of Cashel as an act of gratitude to the people of Cashel for the hospitality received by his followers following their attack on Limerick.

Located in the castle ruins is a memorial sculptured bust of Thomas MacDonagh (1878–1916), Tipperary-born poet and leader of the Easter Rising in 1916.

It was once the largest abbey in Ireland and was surrounded by a small town named Athassel which was burned twice, in 1319 by Lord Maurice Fitzthomas and in 1419 by Bryan O'Brien.

No fragment of the settlement survives today, though an aerial survey exposes to view, a faint tracery of old foundations close to the Abbey ruin.

To mark the centenary of the foundation of the society, a statue in his honour was raised at Thomastown Cross in 1938 and is a visible landmark on the N74 road, west of Golden.