[1] It is situated next to St. Mary's church on a hill, and overlooks the River Martin and the 18th-century Putland's Bridge which predates the tower.

The foundation stone was laid on July 27, 1836[3][4] by a local parish priest, father Matt Horgan, based on the design by John Windele.

[5] The tower narrows towards the top following a barrel shape curve,[2] anecdotally because of the draining of funds towards the end of the construction,[4] which earned it the moniker "Father Matt's Butterchurn".

[6] The four-stage construction is built of rubble stone, with raised entrance modelled on the mediaeval towers, small elongated window openings, two incisions ("1843" and the name "Matthew" in Gaelic script), and a belfry at the top.

[5] In 2009, the tower was renovated at the cost of EUR 35,000, following an 18-month effort and fund rising by the local community Waterloo Renewal Group, including from Heritage Council (Ireland) grants.