On the right side of history
JAMES Hardiman was the first librarian of Queen’s College Galway (now NUIG), but he had other strings to his bow too.
He was a historian, lawyer, folklorist, archaeologist and writer, author of The History of the Town and County of the Town of Galway, published in 1820 and generally described in familiar terms today as “Hardiman’s History of Galway”.
A Mayo man originally, Hardiman made his home at Taylor’s Hill House in Galway city, now known as Ardmore. The Ordnance Survey Letters place him there in the 1830s and describe his home as “a neat two storey high house with suitable offices and garden neatly planted”.
The house was reportedly built in the first half of the 19th century, at which time it was surrounded by open space. Now much of the area has been taken up by a housing development, also called Ardmore. It’s still a well secluded spot as it stands on 0.307 of an acre with lawns and mature trees.
Although it’s been refurbished and upgraded, it still has period features including fireplaces and window shutters (though now with PVC windows).
There are 4,607 sq ft in the main house and another 1,170 in an annex that’s used as a creche at present but might be pressed into a different service.
The main house has five bedrooms on the first floor, the master with an en-suite shower and walk-in wardrobe, as well as an office or sixth bedroom.
The ground floor has a country-style kitchen with an Aga and four other reception rooms. The main one is a bay-windowed drawing room with a marble fireplace; there’s also a living room with a stove, a wood-floored study and a dining room or sunroom with doors to the garden.
The agent is O’Donnellan & Joyce,
(091) 564212 and the asking price is
€1.3m.