Oak Park is a Georgian house and estate in

County Carlow County Carlow ( ; ga, Contae Cheatharlach) is a county located in the South-East Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Carlow is the second smallest and the third least populous of Ireland's 32 traditional counties. Carlow Cou ...

, Ireland, located north of the town of

Carlow Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2016 census, it had a combined urban and rural population of 24,272. The River Barrow flows through the town and forms the historic bounda ...

. The estate was purchased by Irish MP Henry Bruen in 1775 and was substantially remodelled to its current form by the architect

William Vitruvius Morrison William Vitruvius Morrison (1794 – 16 October 1838) was an Irish architect, son and collaborator of Sir Richard Morrison. Life He was born at Clonmel, County Tipperary, second son of Sir Richard Morrison (1767–1849) and Elizabeth Ould, a gran ...

in 1832. It remained in the family until 1957, being inhabited by Bruen's

son A son is a male offspring; a boy or a man in relation to his parents. The female counterpart is a daughter. From a biological perspective, a son constitutes a first degree relative. Social issues In pre-industrial societies and some current c ...

and

grandson Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

, both MPs of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremacy ...

. In 1960 the property was sold to the state via the

Irish Land Commission The Irish Land Commission was created by the British crown in 1843 to 'inquire into the occupation of the land in Ireland. The office of the commission was in Dublin Castle, and the records were, on its conclusion, deposited in the records tower t ...

, and it ultimately became the headquarters of

Teagasc Teagasc (, meaning "Instruction") is the semi-state authority in the Republic of Ireland responsible for research and development, training and advisory services in the agri-food sector. The official title of the body is Teagasc - The Agriculture ...

in the 21st century.

Buildings and structures

The site includes several notable buildings and structures including Oak Park House. What was originally an extensive Georgian house dating from around 1760 was remodelled in 1832 to become a five-bay, two-storey house. The redesign was led by William Vitruvius Morrison and Richard Morrison. A granite ionic triumphal arch was also constructed to their design. The house was later extensively restored following a fire by architect William Mansfield Mitchell in 1902. Other buildings on the estate include: * A

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...

(built c. 1841; now ruined), designed by

John B. Keane John Brendan Keane (21 July 1928 – 30 May 2002) was an Irish playwright, novelist and essayist from Listowel, County Kerry. Biography A son of a national school teacher, William B. Keane, and his wife Hannah (née Purtill), Keane was ...

in a

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

style * Oakpark

Graveyard A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

(c. 1700–1750), with remains of a church built c. 1725 * A two-storey

stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...

complex (built c. 1750–1780), renovated in 1985 * A single-arch cast-iron bridge (built c. 1815), designed by George Papworth

Other facilities

of the site are now operated by the Carlow Tourist Office as Oak Park Forest Park. The admission-free park, which features of nature trails, won a

Royal Dublin Society The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) ( ga, Cumann Ríoga Bhaile Átha Cliath) is an Irish philanthropic organisation and members club which was founded as the 'Dublin Society' on 25 June 1731 with the aim to see Ireland thrive culturally and economi ...

Irish Forestry Award in 2013. Oak Park also hosts a "national centre for

tillage Tillage is the agricultural preparation of soil by mechanical agitation of various types, such as digging, stirring, and overturning. Examples of human-powered tilling methods using hand tools include shoveling, picking, mattock work, hoein ...

and

bio-energy Biomass is plant-based material used as a fuel for heat or electricity production. It can be in the form of wood, wood residues, energy crops, agricultural residues, and waste from industry, farms, and households. Some people use the terms bi ...

crops research", operated by Teagasc.

Gallery

References

External links

Bruen of Oak Park Papers
in the

National Library of Ireland The National Library of Ireland (NLI; ga, Leabharlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is the Republic of Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The mission of the National Library of Ireland is ...

Catalogue Geography of County Carlow Buildings and structures in County Carlow Parks in County Carlow {{Carlow-geo-stub

Buildings and structures

Other facilities

Gallery

See also

References

External links