Information Strokestown Ireland
Eleven kilometres east of Tulsk is the planned town of Strokestown. Its ambitious architects created a tree-lined street wider than most in Europe. The land was in the hands of the MacBranan clan for more than a millennium and was called Corca Achlann. They were underlords of the O’Connor kings of Munster. Some of the lands passed on to Nicholas Mahon after Cromwell stripped the MacBranans of their properties. The central avenue was developed in the nineteenth century by one of the Mahon family. It stretches for several hundred metres, passing through the town’s centre. One end of the street is an octagonal church, divested of much of its architecture today but still retaining a spire. It is now a heritage and genealogy centre for the Roscommon people and any of their descendants eager to research family history. At the other end of the grand thoroughfare, you will find Strokestown Park House after passing through a Gothic arch. The house is in the Palladian style. From 1660 until recently, it was the home of the Pakenham Mahon family. Today, the mansion is restored and open to the public. The main section of the house comprises seven bays with four storeys including the basement. Extensions were built around 1740 for MP for Roscommon Thomas Mahon. Further enhancement was done on the building in 1819. The rooms within the huge house are surprisingly small. However, in keeping with the exterior renovations, the interiors also date from different periods. Wood panelling from the early eighteenth century can be seen in some parts of the house, while furniture from a century later can be seen in others. Near to Strokestown Park House is a restored garden that had fallen into such a bad state that it was used to graze sheep. Today, it’s been brought back to its former Edwardian period glory.
Attractions Strokestown Ireland
Boyle Abbey - Boyle
An impressive and well preserved Cistercian Monastery which was founded in the 12th century under the patronage of the local ruling family, the MacDermotts. Though mutilated during the 17th and 18th centuries when it was used to accommodate a military garrison, Boyle Abbey nevertheless retains its ability to impress the visitor as one of the most formidable of the early Cistercian foundations in Ireland. A restored gatehouse of 16th/17th century houses an exhibition.
Clonalis House - Castlerea
Clonalis is the ancestral home of the O'Connors, Kings of Connaught and the family from which the last High Kings of Ireland came. The O'Conor inauguration stone, similar to the Stone of Scone which lies in Westminster, belonged to the O'Connor clan for 1,500 years. A fascinating historic archive of over 100,000 documents is maintained at Clonalis, including a copy of the last Brehon Law judgement, handed down about 1580. A harp owned by Turlough O'Connor, the blind Irish bard, is on display in the house.
Elphin Windmill - Elphin
A fully restored, working 18th century windmill, the oldest type in the country. It was perfectly located to harness the winds sweeping over the plains of Elphin. It has a thatched revolving roof and four sails that are turned into the wind by using a tail pole attached to a cartwheel on a circular track.
King House - Boyle
The house was built in the 1720s by Sir Henry King, King House is one of the most important provincial townhouses in Ireland and Britain. It was home to the Earls of Kingston until 1788 when it became a military barracks for the Connaught Rangers Regiment of the British Army, and later for the Irish Army. Now beautifully restored, King House has a series of exciting interactive exhibitions focusing on Gaelic Ireland, the King Family and their time as landlords, the construction of the house and its military history.
Roscommon County Museum - Roscommon
The museum has a unique collection of artefacts relating to the history of the county, the town and its people. Formerly a Presbyterian Church, it was built in the 1860s. A collection of horse drawn farm machinery is also displayed in a yard behind the museum.Items on display include a ninth century inscribed slab from St. Comans foundation, Church street Roscommon, a replica of the Cross of Cong with the inscription "made in Roscommon", and a superb example of a "Sheel na Gig" figure from Rahara.
