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A view of the exterior of Ards House near Creeslough in County Donegal. Ards House (later Ard Mhuire Capuchin Friary) was formerly the residence of the Stewart-Bam family. The house and demesne were taken over by the Irish Land Commission in 1927. It was acquired by the Capuchin Order in March 1930. The Order changed the name of the old Stewart-Bam house to Ard Mhuire which became a theological seminary. The first community consisted of Fr. Colman Griffin OFM Cap. (Guardian), Fr. Patrick Kelleher OFM Cap., Fr. Andrew Carew OFM Cap. and Br. Fidelis Rice OFM Cap. It took some time to convert Ards House into a Capuchin friary. A power plant was built for electric light and central heating was installed. A large fire in December 1944 caused considerable damage to the old house and the decision was made in the mid-1950s to demolish the residence and build a new friary and church. At this point, the mansion was in a terrible state of repair – the lead roof was developing cracks and was leaking and the oldest part of the building, the elaborate façade, was crumbling. The new Capuchin Friary at Ard Mhuire was formally opened on 13 November 1966. The friary overlooks the shores of Sheephaven Bay and now offers retreats, conferences, seminars, and periods of rest and relaxation, reflection, prayer and holidays.

A view of Ards House and demesne as seen from the shores of Sheephaven Bay in County Donegal.

A view of Ards House and demesne as seen from the shores of Sheephaven Bay in County Donegal.

A photocopy of an article titled ‘Ards House’ published in 'The Father Mathew Record' (Feb. 1967), pp 17-24. The article was written by Edward MacIntyre with an introduction by Fr. Benedict Cullen OFM Cap. The article provides a history of Ards House and the former Stewart-Bam estate. The article headings are as follows: The Lifford Inquisition, John (‘half-hanged’) MacNaughton, The builder of Ards House, Road from Letterkenny, Magistrate, Beggard the Estate, Uncle of Lord Castlereagh, Land Acts, Chapel and Choir, and A Greater Landlord. The article also publishes two images of Lady Ena Stewart and the staff of Ards House.

An article on the history of the Wray family in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The Wrays were the owners of the Ards Estate before it was purchased by the Stewarts in 1781. It is noted that in about 1700 William Wray ‘bought 5,000 acres of land between Dunfanaghy and Doe from William Sampson’. The article adds: 'In 1781 the estate was sold to Mr Alexander Stewart, brother of the first Marquess of Londonderry and uncle of the infamous Lord Castlereagh, for the sum of £13,250 in order to meet the owner’s debts'. An appendix to the article includes some brief notes on the Stewarts of Ards compiled by Fr. T.J. Walsh, a diocesan priest in Cork.

A postcard print of the main street in Ardgroom, a village on the Beara Peninsula in County Cork. The image is credited to Kennelly Photoworks, Ashe Street, Tralee, County Kerry.

An image of Ardboe High Cross in County Tyrone. A typescript annotation on the reverse of the print reads 'High Cross at Ardboe / said to be the finest example in Ireland'.

Photographic prints of the exterior of Ard Mhuire Friary and members of the Capuchin community bathing in the waters of Sheephaven Bay. The prints are date-stamped on the reverse.

File of photographic prints of Capuchin friars (and students) at Ard Mhuire Friary in County Donegal. One of the prints shows Fr. Colman Griffin OFM Cap., guardian from 1930-7, with students in the community.

Architectural plans (elevations and sections), designs, drawings and sketches for the new Capuchin House of Studies and Ard Mhuire Friary and Church, County Donegal, prepared by James Rupert Boyd Barrett (c.1904-1976), architect, 5 Camden Place, Cork. The file includes the following architectural records:

1. Sketch plan for House of Studies, Ard Mhuire Friary
   Date: Nov. 1958
   Number: Sketch 1
   Scale: 1 inch to 16 feet
   Sheet size: OS; 104 cm x 77 cm
   Note: With colour washes

2. Sketch plan for basement and ground floors of the House of Studies
   Date: 5 Jan. 1959
   Number: Sketch 2
   Scale: 1 inch to 16 feet
   Sheet size: 69 cm x 67 cm
   Note: With colour washes

3. Sketch plan of alterations to accommodation block of the House of Studies.
   Date: 5 Jan. 1959
   Number: Sketch 3
   Scale: 1 inch to 16 feet
   Sheet size: 69 cm x 67 cm
   Note: With colour washes

4. Elevations and sections for alterations to the House of Studies and Friary
   Date: 7 Apr. 1959
   Number: Drawing 5
   Scale: 1 inch to 16 feet
   Sheet size: 110 cm x 66 cm
   Note: With colour washes

5. Sketch, elevation, floor plan and axonometric view of the Friary
   Date: 14 Jan. 1960
   Number: Sketch 1
   Scale: 1 inch to 32 feet
   Sheet size: 117 cm x 69 cm
   Note: With colour washes

6. Elevation and sections of the House of Studies
   Date: 9 Oct. 1962
   Number: Drawing 8
   Scale: 1 inch to 16 feet
   Sheet size: 126 cm x 71 cm
   Note: With colour washes

7. Floor plans (ground, first and second) of the House of Studies
   Date: 15 Oct. 1962
   Number: Drawing 7
   Scale: 1 inch to 16 feet; 1 inch to 22 feet
   Sheet size: 130 cm x 72 cm
   Note: With colour washes. The sheet shows the location of the Old Ard Mhuire Friary (formerly Ards House) with a note indicating that this is ‘to be demolished’.

8. Revisions to ground floor plan of the House of Studies
   Date: Jan. 1963
   Number: Drawing 3
   Scale: 1 inch to 8 feet
   Sheet size: 114 cm x 67.5 cm
   Note: The sheet is torn and frayed. Careful manual handling is required.

9. First-floor plan of the House of Studies
   Date: Jan. 1963
   Number: Drawing 4
   Scale: 1 inch to 8 feet
   Sheet size: 110 cm x 67 cm

10. Revisions to second-floor plan of the House of Studies
    Date: Jan. 1963
    Number: Drawing 5
    Scale: 1 inch to 8 feet
    Sheet size: 110 cm x 67 cm

11. Survey of proposed Ard Mhuire Friary and the House of Studies
    Date: 26 July 1963
    Number: No file number given
    Scale: 1 inch to 32 feet
    Sheet size: 76 cm x 61 cm
    Note: The survey was completed by E.G. Pettit, consulting engineer, 7 South Mall, Cork, for J.R. Boyd Barrett. The survey shows the location of the Old Ard Mhuire Friary (formerly Ards House) relative to the site of the new House of Studies.

12. Details of Altar Rail in Ard Mhuire Friary Church
    Date: 1965
    Number: Drawing 53
    Scale: ½ inch to 1 foot
    Sheet size: 72 cm x 48 cm

13. Details of seating in Ard Mhuire Friary Church
    Date: Nov. 1965
    Number: Drawing 54
    Scale: ½ inch to 1 foot
    Sheet size: 104 cm x 73 cm

14. Sketch plan of sanctuary layout in Ard Mhuire Friary Church
    Date: 24 Aug. 1965
    Number: No file number given
    Scale: 1 inch to 4 feet
    Sheet size: 66 cm x 56 cm

15. Design for layout of sacristy in Ard Mhuire Friary Church
    Date: Oct. 1965
    Number: Drawing 52
    Scale: ½ inch to 1 foot
    Sheet size: 61 cm x 36 cm

16. Details of choir stalls in Ard Mhuire Friary
    Date: Mar. 1965
    Number: Drawing 40
    Scale: 3 inches to 1 foot; 1 inch to 1 foot; ⅛ inch to 1 foot
    Sheet size: 94 cm x 70 cm

17. Landscaping and garden plan for Ard Mhuire Friary
    Date: July 1965
    Number: No file number given
    Scale: 1 inch to 16 feet
    Sheet size: 92 cm x 67 cm
    Note: The plan was compiled by Powers of Waterford.