The concept of Improvement cross cuts moral, cultural and ideological realms, as well as practical aspects of material life, including housing, education, and agricultural technology. Archaeological and historical research on Inishark, County. Galway, Ireland, provides a unique opportunity to identify and track the linkages between Irish National policy and local community actions that created a material footprint of improvement from the 1880s to the 1920s. Drawing upon vernacular architecture and village phasing, detailed historical maps, ownership records, and detailed computer mapping, this study presents a multi-dimensional portrait of improvement within nineteenth- through twentieth-century Irish communities.