Klmoroney House

The Barrow towpath walk day is still a few days away as I sit down to write this Eye on the Past.  Will the weather, I wonder, permit those participating to venture as far a Kilmoroney House that gaunt ghostly roofless shell which stands proudly on rising ground overlooking the river Barrow? 

How, by whom, and when, Kilmoroney House was built we cannot say with any degree of certainty.  Suffice to say that the house did not appear on the Noble and Keenan map of 1752 but did appear in Taylor's map thirty one years later.  Some time in between these two dates the fine two storey over basement buildings of five bays with a balustrade roof parapet was constructed.  On the west side of the house identified as Sportland in Taylor's map there was a two storey wing of four bays.

It is generally known that Kilmoroney House was the home of the Weldon's who arrived in Ireland from England in or around 1600.  Four brothers, Walter, William, Robert and Thomas Weldon acquired large estates in Leix and Kildare and it was Walter Weldon who settled in Athy.  He was a Member of Parliament for Athy Borough in 1613 and his fourth son, William also served in that position in 1661.  Both father and son held the position of High Sheriff of the County of Kildare during their lifetimes.  Later still Walter Weldon from Rahinderry was a Member of Parliament for Athy having been ‘elected’ in 1745 at the age of 21 years.  The lands at Kilmoroney were acquired by a Robert Weldon from the Graham family sometime in the middle of the 18^th century and it is probably this Robert Weldon who built Kilmoroney House. 

Several years ago I came across a book published privately in 1908 by two daughters of Helena Lefroy who was born the eldest of four daughters of Reverent Frederick Trench, Rector of Athy and his wife Lady Helena.  The Rector's wife was the daughter of Lord Arden and a niece of Spencer Perceval, the British Prime Minister who was assassinated in the lobby of the House of Commons in 1812.

The Trench's lived in Bert for the first fourteen years of their married life before moving to Kilmoroney House.  In 1816 Kilmoroney was held by Stewart Weldon whose half sister was Frederick Trench's mother.  Anthony Weldon was heir to the property but at fourteen years of age he entered the services of the East India Company and was not heard of again for many years.  His cousin, Stewart Weldon believing him to be dead let Kilmoroney House to Frederick Trench for his life on condition that if Anthony Weldon ever returned the house should revert to the Weldons on Trench's death.  After an absence of thirty years Anthony Weldon did make contact with his family but the Trench's continued to live in Kilmoroney House until the death of the local Rector on the 23^rd of November 1860.

The following extract is taken from Helena Lefroy's nee Trench's memoirs:-

‘Kilmoroney as I remember it was situated on a bend or wide loop of the River Barrow - - driving from Athy the river had to be crossed at about a quarter of a mile from the house and as there were no bridge in those days a large float was kept.  On this the carriage usually drawn by two horses was driven and the float was the poled across the river and the carriage driven off the other side’. 

The Levistown Canal cut was in place at that time and the driveway to Kilmoroney House passed over the canal cutting courtesy of a bridge constructed by the Barrow navigation company.  Across from Kilmoroney House on the Carlow Road side of the Levitstown Canal cut is the site of Grangemellon Castle, once the home of the infamous John St. Leger.  He combined membership of the Hell Fire Club with membership of the English House of Commons as Member of Parliament for Athy.  St. Leger, who on occasions is believed to have hosted meetings of the Hell Fire Club in Grangemellon Castle, served as the Athy Borough Parliamentary Member for one year only.  He was ‘elected’ in 1768 and died the following year.  Interestingly St. Leger was replaced as M.P. for Athy by Walter Hussey, regarded as one of the finest orators of his time.  Hussey was married to a sister of William Burgh of Bert House who was also an M.P. for Athy Borough.

After the death of Rev. Frederick Trench in 1860 Kilmoroney House came back into the possession of the Weldon's.  Sir Anthony Weldon who was appointed Colonel in charge of the 4^th battalion Leinster Regiment shortly before he died in 1917 lived in Kilmoroney.  His funeral to St. John's cemetery Athy was a large military affair.  He was succeeded by his Anthony who died in Co Donegal in 1971 and he was the last Weldon to be buried in the family vault in St. John's cemetery.  Kilmoroney House was vacated over seventy years ago and the lands taken over by the Land Commission for distribution amongst local farmers. 

Kilmoroney House

As you pass on the road to Carlow cast your eyes across the Barrow Valley on the right hand side and see in the distance the crumbling remains of Kilmoroney House. It is a broken, roofless, derelict shell standing outlined against the Laois skyline. It's story is part of our heritage.

Kilmoroney House was built in 1780 by Stewart Weldon, son of Walter and Mary Weldon of Rahinderry, Co. Laois. Stewart was an only son and he married in 1777 Helen, sister of Henry, the 2nd Marquis of Coneygham. The house as originally constructed was a two storey, five bay Georgian house of grand proportions with a balustraded roof parapet. It was in time to have a lower two storey wing added.

Stewart Weldon died on the 2nd of January, 1829 and Kilmoroney House passed to his first cousin Anthony Weldon, son of Rev. Anthony Weldon of Athy who at 14 years of age had entered the East Indian Service. Inexplicably Anthony Weldon was not heard of for many years and believing him to be dead Kilmoroney was left to Rev. F.S. Trench and his wife Helena on condition that if Anthony Weldon ever returned the property should revert to him on Rev. Trench's death. Frederick Trench, Rector of Athy, and last Sovereign of Athy Borough Council was son of Rev. Thomas Trench, Dean of Kildare and his wife Helena was daughter of Lord Arden. The Trenches who had lived for 12 years at Bert moved to Kilmoroney House in 1832.

Mrs. Helena Trench was niece of The Honourable Spencer Percival, the British Prime Minister who was assassinated in the lobby of the House of Commons on the 11th of May, 1812. She had four daughters, the eldest of whom Helena later married Rev. Jeffrey Lefroy, third son of Thomas Lefroy, the Lord Chief Justice of Ireland. Even with this marriage the Athy connection was maintained as Thomas Lefroy, the Lord Chief Justice, as a young boy from County Longford attended Mr. Ash's classical school in Athy as a boarder with his brother Ben Lefroy in 1791.

Helena Lefroy, nee Trench, was 12 years old when the Trench family moved to Kilmoroney. The house, as remembered by her, was situated on a bend of the River Barrow and travelling from Athy the river had to be crossed one quarter of a mile from the house. There was no bridge across the river in the 1830's and a large float was used to carry carriages and horses across. From the river the ground in front of the house rose gently, the drive first passing a wooded area on the left.

The Trench family continued to live in Kilmoroney House until the unfortunate death of Rev. Trench following an accident in Offaly Street when his horse and gig collided with Preston's Gate, the last remains of the old medieval wall of Athy. Trench died on the 23rd of November, 1860 and the Gate was subsequently removed by the Town Commissioners of Athy. In his Will Rev. Trench left a bequest in favour of the poor of Athy and ever since a sum of money is paid each year to the Parish Priest of the town under the terms of his Will. A beautiful carved marble pulpit in memory of Rev. F.S. Trench is to be found in St. Michael's Church of Ireland Church on the Carlow Road.

The long missing Anthony Weldon who at 14 years of age had gone overseas returned after 30 years absence. On the death of Rev. Trench Kilmoroney House reverted to the Weldon family and in particular to Sir Anthony Cresdill Weldon, 5th Baronet Rahinderry, son of the West Indian adventurer who had died in 1858 having earlier succeeded to the Baronetcy of his cousin Sir William Bundett in 1840.

Kilmoroney House and the land on which it stood was to remain in the possession of the Weldon family until 1934 when the then Lady Weldon moved to Dublin following the death of her husband Sir Anthony Weldon in 1931. A public auction of the contents of Kilmoroney House was held that year and many of the valuable artifacts accumulated by generations of the Weldons were dispersed.

The property was then let on a ten year Lease to a Mountrath man but during the second World War Sir Thomas Weldon, the 8th Baronet who by then was living in England, found himself unable to take up residence again in Kilmoroney House. The Irish Land Commission took over the land and the magnificent Georgian House was allowed to fall into ruin.

The remains of Kilmoroney House are a visible and stark reminder of the social changes brought about in the Republic of Ireland in the years immediately following the Treaty.