Introduction
House
Gardens
Famine Museum
Houses for Rent
Restaurant
Opening Hours
Books
Shop & Plant Sales
Related Sites
How to get here
Contact us
|
|
Strokestown
Park was built by Thomas Mahon MP (1701-1782) on lands which had been
granted to his grandfather, Nicholas, in the latter half of the 17th
century for his support in the British colonial campaign. It was the
family home of the Mahon family until 1979 when the house, in an advanced
state of disrepair, along with what remained of the estate, was purchased
by a local company, Westward Garage, who needed some extra land to expand
their business. |
|
 |
| Their initial intention was to keep the few acres they needed to
expand their business and to sell on the remainder of the estate to recoup
their finances. At that stage Westward was a young emerging company, with
limited cash resources. |
 |
However, when they spent
some time in the house and saw what was there, they decided that
Strokestown Park was far too important from a heritage point of view to
risk losing it. They negotiated a deal with the Mahon family to ensure
that virtually all of the original furnishings would remain at Strokestown
Park. They also pleaded with the family to leave behind the documents that
remained in the estate office. By doing so they had ensured the salvation
of a huge part of the heritage of County Roscommon. |
|
| The first public role for the house was when it was used for the
making of the film 'Anne Devlin', based on the 1798 Rising, in 1984. What
then followed was a restoration project of such enthusiasm and energy that
it was to be acknowledged as the single best private restoration in the
history of the state. |
|
| The house was opened to
the public in 1987 and is unique in that it affords visitors the
opportunity to browse through the public rooms on professionally guided
tours, surrounded by the original furnishings of the house. The House is
unchanged from the time when the Mahons lived there, as evidenced by
photographs which can be seen in the house. |
 |
 |
|
