Hermitage House

Hermitage House was a large Georgian mansion in Castleconnell, County Limerick, Ireland. It was built circa 1800 for George Evans Bruce (1782-1868), a local banker who was subsequently disgraced following the collapse of various Limerick banks in which he was a partner including Charlieville Bank and Bruce's Bank.^[1]

It was situated in a spectacular location overlooking the Falls of Doonass on the River Shannon and was said to be an imposing structure of 37 rooms. It was a 5 bay structure with four large corinthian pilasters supporting a smaller pediment at the front of the three story over basement building while there was a stone balustrade along the front parapet of the house with a stone urn at its centre.^[2]

It became the home of several generations of Lords Massy from 1807 until 1915, and was subsequently destroyed by fire during the Irish War of Independence.^[3]

The ruins stood until the 1970s, when they were demolished.

Various archaeological finds have been discovered at the estate. including a fulacht fiadh close to what was a fording point of the River Shannon.^[4]

Sources

• Tracy, Frank If those Trees could Speak: the story of an Ascendancy Family in Ireland
• Carroll, Joe & Touhy, Pat (1991) Village by Shannon: the Story of Castleconnell and its Hinterland