Survey Data
Reg No
31216018
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Artistic, Historical, Social
Original Use
House
In Use As
Hotel
Date
1860 - 1870
Coordinates
115527, 254588
Date Recorded
13/12/2010
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Detached four-bay two-storey part double-pile over basement land agent's house, built 1865[?]; extant 1867, on an L-shaped plan centred on single-bay single-storey flat-roofed projecting porch to ground floor abutting single-bay two-storey advanced end bay; three-bay two-storey side (west) elevation. Occupied, 1911. Extensively renovated, 2004, to accommodate alternative use. Replacement hipped part double-pile (M-profile) slate roof on an L-shaped plan with clay ridge tiles, paired rendered central chimney stacks on rendered bases having "Torus" stringcourses below capping supporting terracotta or yellow terracotta pots, and uPVC rainwater goods on timber eaves boards on exposed timber rafters. Replacement rendered, ruled and lined walls on dragged cut-limestone chamfered cushion course on rendered plinth with rusticated rendered piers to corners. Square-headed window openings with cut-limestone sills, and concealed dressings framing two-over-two timber sash windows. Interior including (ground floor): vestibule; square-headed door opening into entrance hall with glazed timber panelled double doors having sidelights on panelled risers below overlight; entrance hall retaining carved timber surrounds to door openings framing timber panelled doors; dining room (west) retaining carved timber surround to door opening framing timber panelled door with carved timber surrounds to window openings framing timber panelled shutters on panelled risers; drawing room (east) retaining carved timber surround to door openings framing timber panelled doors with carved timber surrounds to window openings framing timber panelled shutters on panelled risers; and carved timber surrounds to door openings to remainder framing timber panelled doors with carved timber surrounds to window openings framing timber panelled shutters on panelled risers. Set in landscaped grounds.
Appraisal
A land agent's house erected by Sir Benjamin Lee Guinness (1798-1868) of Ashford Castle (NUIG) representing an integral component of the mid nineteenth-century domestic built heritage of the outskirts of Cong with the architectural value of the composition, one latterly known as "Lisloughrey Lodge", confirmed by such attributes as the deliberate alignment maximising on panoramic vistas overlooking Lough Corrib with its undulating mountainous backdrop; the compact plan form centred on a Classically-detailed porch; and the diminishing in scale of the openings on each floor producing a graduated visual impression. Having been well maintained, the elementary form and massing survive intact together with substantial quantities of the original or sympathetically replicated fabric, both to the exterior and to the interior, thereby upholding the character or integrity of a house having historic connections with a succession of land agents including William Burke (1816-1908; Wilde 1867, 158); and Francis John Turnly JP (1862-1934), 'Land Agent' (NA 1901).