A print captioned 'General view of Armagh'. An ink stamp on the reverse of the print credits the image to 'A & C Photography, 14 Howard Street, Belfast'.
A view over the town of Armagh. The image is taken from an elevated position on Sandy Hill, the site of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The statue in the foreground honours William Crolly (1780-1849), the Archbishop of Armagh from 1835 to 1849 who was instrumental in securing the site for the cathedral and who laid its foundation stone on St. Patrick’s Day in 1840.
A view of the ruins of Ardtully House near Kilgarvan in County Kerry. An annotation on the reverse of the print reads 'Grounds of Ardtully Castle / showing the turret of the Orpen Mansion'. The original castle on this site was destroyed during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland in the mid-seventeenth century. In 1847, Sir Richard Orpen (1788-1876) demolished the remains of the castle and replaced it with a five-bay, two-storey Scottish-Baronial style house. This house was itself destroyed during the War of Independence in 1921.
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.
Clipping of an article titled ‘Ards House: now Ard Mhuire’ published in the 'Derry Journal'. The article explores (in some detail) the history of Ards House and the early years of its occupation by the Capuchin friars.
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.
