This was another stop to add some fun to a recent drive across the boggy centre of Ireland. Situated on the edge of a lake, Loughglynn was originally a country house, built ca. 1715 and extended ca. 1820. It then became a convent and school in the late 1800’s, supporting a thriving dairy industry before ending up as a nursing home for retired sisters of the convent, with a chapel added ca. 1970. It was purchased by a developer in 2002 with plans to turn it into a luxury hotel, but these fell through when the Irish property bubble burst and the house has remained empty and increasingly derelict.
http://www.buildingsofireland.ie/niah/search.jsp?county=RO®no=31920002&type=record
http://www.antaisce.org/buildingsatrisk/loughglynn-convent-loughglinn
The place is rather well protected as the external shots show, with pretty much all reachable entrances having either bars or metal sheeting or both. Luckily it was possible to squeeze through a gap about an inch narrower than a typical palisade; our getaway driver auntie Woo decided at this point that the overgrown gardens were more rewarding.
As far the inside goes, the upstairs was not of much interest since the large rooms had been subdivided into many smaller bedrooms, but there were some nice spaces on the ground floor and basement. There has been some vandalism and most of the fire surrounds have gone, although I didn’t notice any graffiti. As usual, photos were taken handheld on auto, many with flash because it was pretty dark inside. Visited with junior and two non-members.
Old photo before the chapel had been built.
The rear side, facing the lake.
Former sisters buried in a circular cemetery in the woods nearby (gravestone shots from
)
http://www.buildingsofireland.ie/niah/search.jsp?county=RO®no=31920002&type=record
http://www.antaisce.org/buildingsatrisk/loughglynn-convent-loughglinn
The place is rather well protected as the external shots show, with pretty much all reachable entrances having either bars or metal sheeting or both. Luckily it was possible to squeeze through a gap about an inch narrower than a typical palisade; our getaway driver auntie Woo decided at this point that the overgrown gardens were more rewarding.
As far the inside goes, the upstairs was not of much interest since the large rooms had been subdivided into many smaller bedrooms, but there were some nice spaces on the ground floor and basement. There has been some vandalism and most of the fire surrounds have gone, although I didn’t notice any graffiti. As usual, photos were taken handheld on auto, many with flash because it was pretty dark inside. Visited with junior and two non-members.
Old photo before the chapel had been built.
The rear side, facing the lake.
Former sisters buried in a circular cemetery in the woods nearby (gravestone shots from