Mullaboden, Naas, Co Kildare 

Mark Bence-Jones. A Guide to Irish Country Houses (originally published as Burke’s Guide to Country Houses volume 1 Ireland by Burke’s Peerage Ltd. 1978); Revised edition 1988 Constable and Company Ltd, London. 

p. 220. “(Crichton, sub Erne, E/PB; Mahon/LG!1912) An irregular two storey Victorian Italianate house, with campanile tower. Burnt 1923 when it was the home of Gen Sir Bryan and Lady Mahon; afterwards rebuilt.” 

https://www.buildingsofireland.ie/buildings-search/building/11902406/mullaboden-house-coghlanstown-west-co-kildare

Mullaboden House, COGHLANSTOWN WEST, County Kildare

Detached three-bay two-storey house, c.1820, retaining early fenestration with single-bay single-storey projecting porch to centre, two-bay two-storey side elevation to west having pair of single-bay single-storey lean-to advanced bays to ground floor, two-bay two-storey lean-to lower parallel range along rear elevation and two-bay two-storey return to rear to north. Now disused. Gable-ended roof with slate (hipped to porch; lean-to to advanced bays and to return to north-west). Clay ridge tiles. Red brick chimney stacks. Rendered coping to gables. Overhanging timber eaves. Cast-iron rainwater goods on corbels. Roughcast walls. Unpainted. Rendered block-and-start margins to porch. Square-headed window openings (tripartite to ground floor in segmental-headed recessed niches). Stone sills. 6/3 and 6/6 timber sash windows (some retaining original crown/cylinder glass). Square-headed door opening. Timber panelled door. Set in grounds shared with Mullaboden House. Part overgrown grounds to site. Attached range of outbuildings, c.1860, to rear to north on a quadrangular plan (with house forming range to south) about a courtyard comprising: Multiple-bay two-storey rubble stone range on an L-shaped plan (forming ranges to east and to north) with two-bay two-storey wing to north-east and single-bay four-stage projecting water tower to east on a square plan. Gable-ended roofs with slate. Clay ridge tiles. Red brick chimney stacks. Rendered coping to gables. Cast-iron rainwater goods. Pyramidal roof to tower with slate. Clay ridge tiles. Moulded eaves on red brick dentilated cornice. Roughcast walls over rubble stone construction. Unpainted. Rubble stone walls to tower. Dressed stone quoins to corners. Round niche to upper stage with red brick surround. Cut-stone stringcourse to upper stage. Square-headed window openings. Cut-stone sills. Yellow brick dressings. 2/2 timber sash windows. Square-headed door openings. Tongue-and-groove timber panelled doors. Square-headed integral carriageways. Red brick dressings. Timber lintels on posts. Square-headed window openings to upper stage to tower. Stone sills. Red brick dressings. No fittings. Eight-bay single-storey range with attic (forming range to west). Gable-ended roof with slate. Clay ridge tiles. Rendered coping to gables. Overhanging timber eaves with exposed rafters. Cast-iron rainwater goods. Rendered walls over rubble stone construction. Unpainted. Square-headed window openings. Stone sills. Yellow brick dressings including continuous course over heads of openings. Timber casement windows. Square-headed door openings. Tongue-and-groove timber panelled half doors. Gateway, c.1820, to south comprising pair of rusticated granite piers with ball finals having rubble stone curved walls and wrought iron gate.

Appraisal

This building – built as the stable yard to Mullaboden House – is a fine and imposing farmyard complex, formally arranged about a courtyard, which also incorporates accommodation for the farm or stable manager. Although now disused the complex is in good condition and retains most of its original character, features and fittings. The residential portion of the complex is of considerable architectural interest and takes the form of an early nineteenth-century substantial residence, symmetrically planned and with elevations of graceful Classical proportions. The front (south) elevation is centred around a projecting porch (possibly a later addition) and includes refined architectural features such as Wyatt-style tripartite window openings and recessed niches. The house retains most of its original features, including multi-pane fenestration, some incorporating early cylinder/crown glass. The retention of an early external aspect suggests that the interior may also contain original features of note. Completing the quadrangle, the ranges to south are individually of architectural importance and are constructed of unusually fine materials. Each range retains important early salient features, including timber sash fenestration, timber panelled doors and a slate roof. Of special interest is the water tower to west that, as well as being of considerable technical importance, was designed as an aesthetic piece (including refined detailing to the upper stage) and identifies the building in its surroundings. Visible from the road side, the tower also adds picturesque incident to the skyline. The complex as a whole is of social and historical importance and would have historically provided much employment in the locality. Related structures, such as the gateway, are also of interest and retain many of their original fittings – the stone work on the piers reveals the high quality stone masonry practised in the locality.