Avondale House
Avondale House stands in a 500 acre of estate of forest and parkland on the west bank of the River Avonmore and is situated 1 mile from the village of Rathdrum in the east or Ireland.
Avondale House is grand, white, two storey Georgian house fully refurbished and shown in the period of the 1850's with original pieces of furniture and fine plasterwork. It stands next to formal lawns surrounded by flowerbeds extending out into the estate and woodland beyond.
Facilities
The house is now a museum in memory one of Irelands most revered political leaders of modern times, Charles Stewart Parnell.
Inside the museum the 'American Room' is dedicated to Parnell's grandfather Admiral Charles Parnell who was stationed on the USS Constitution during the war in 1812.
Popular with many visitors are the numerous walking and orienteering trails within the estate which last anything from one to five hours in length.
The house has a special audio visual presentation which tells the history of the house and it famous occupant as well as a gift shop and restaurant. Avondale House is open daily between May and October and at the weekends in April.
Avondale House was designed and built in 1777 by James Wyatt and passed into the Parnell family in 1795.
Charles Stewart Parnell was born at Avondale in June 1846 and spent the majority of his time there until his death in 1891. He was the leader of the 'Home Rule Party' in the 1880's and although thwarted, he was instrumental in pressing Gladstone to introduce land reform and home rule in Ireland.
Avondale was purchased by the state in 1904 when it has since been used as a training school for the Forestry Board known locally as the Coilte, and also as an experimental siviculture styled like a continental garden. In 1991 to mark the centenary of Parnell's death a park was created with a bronze statue in the centre.