Ballinamona, Cashel, Co Tipperary
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. 17. (Gilbey, Bt/PB) A two storey late-Georgian house. Three bay front, fanlighted doorway obscured by later two bayside-entered porch with simple pilasters and corner-pilasters; roundheaded tripartite windows in lower storey on either sideof centre. Three bay side. Internal fanlight between hall and stairs. The seat of the Murphy family; passed by inheritance to Mrs. Ralph Gilbey.”
Detached L-plan three-bay two-storey house, built c. 1820, with rear return to one side, lower two-bay two-storey addition to return, and having two-bay lean-to addition to rear of other side. Later projecting hipped slate roofed porch to front. Hipped slate roof with rendered chimneystacks. Pitched slate roof to addition. Painted lined-and-ruled rendered walls, slate-hung to gable of lean-to addition. Segmental-headed tripartite window openings to ground floor front, square-headed elsewhere, with six-over-six pane timber sliding sash windows, all with limestone sills. Variety of timber sliding sash windows to rear elevation of return. Round-headed door opening to porch interior having spoked fanlight and timber panelled door. Glazed timber door and windows to porch. Segmental-arched carriage gateway to yard to rear of house. Multiple-bay double-height outbuildings having pitched and lean-to slate roofs and painted rendered walls. West range has bellcote to north gable, wide windbreak to segmental-arched entrance and having spoked diocletian window above. Snecked rubble limestone piers with carved caps and decorative double-leaf cast-iron gates.
The regular and symmetrical form of this house is typical of the larger farm houses of the era. However, the round-headed tripartite windows are an unusual feature which serve to enliven the façade and the large chimneystacks add a sense of grandeur to the building. The site is enhanced by the retention of interesting outbuildings, one with an ornate bellcote and carriage arch which provides context to the site. The piers and cast-iron gates are decorative and form an attractive roadside feature.
In late autumn 2016 Tipperary Studies received a donation of family papers from the present owners of Ballinamona House, Cashel, the Clifton-Browne family. The papers relate to the Murphy family, previous owners of Ballinamona House. The collection contained 1,251 negative images.
While most are of Ballinamona House, grounds and family there are images from various parts of Tipperary, Ireland and England, with a lot of varied images of social life, farm animals, horses and families in and around Ballinamona. There are also several images of the Galtee mountains.
At the time the images were taken, the owner of Ballinamona was Lt. Col. Edmond William Murphy (died 6 February 1947) and his wife Mary Ellen Murphy (died early 1931). They were married on 11 April 1883 at Bavarian Chapel, Westminster. The first lot of negatives, based on age profile, are believed to date from the late 1890s to around 1912. These were taken by brother and sister Edmond William Montague Murphy (born 10 October 1886) and Mary Kathleen Murphy (born 1888). In this there are 101 items. There are also fourteen sleeves of undated and unnamed negatives of which there are 163 items. The next lot dating from August 1913 to September 1932 were taken by Edmond W.M. Murphy. In this there are 983 items. In the Edmond Murphy files there are 4 items which could not be matched with the writing on the negative sleeve. Based on the writing on the sleeve and numbering sequence which Edmond used there are 114 negatives missing.
In the images taken by Mary Kathleen there are several which include Alfred Durham “Durrie” Murphy, DSO, MC (born 30 April 1890), brother to Edmond and Kathleen. He was a Lieut-Colonel with the Leinster Regiment in World War I. He was killed in action on 6 November 1917, aged 27 years.
Edmond was Hon. Secretary of the Irish Rainfall Association. He died on 20 March 1965, aged 78 years. Kathleen died on the 16th of February 1975, at Ballinamona House.
The text of Edmond’s images are as he has indexed them on the negative sleeves. While the contrast and exposure on several images was adjusted to enhance the finished image, there are several which were could not be enhanced and the quality is therefore somewhat duller.
A few minutes spent browsing these fascinating images will give wonderful insight into the social history of early 20th Century Tipperary, and beyond.
Irish Historic Houses 