Shannon Estuary Way: Stories of park life in Curraghchase

LOCATED just off the Wild Atlantic Way, the Shannon Estuary Way is a new tourist route developed by Fáilte Ireland together with Clare and Limerick City & County Councils which is set to become a key tourist attraction for the Mid-West region. As part of our continuing series, the Limerick Leader is focusing on the people who populate the towns and villages along the route. This week, it's the turn of Curraghchase.

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After over a year of Covid restrictions we are now able to travel and mingle once again. Our weather has improved so families can travel to forest parks, beauty spots and areas of historical interest. One such area is Curraghchase Forest Park which lies in the parish of Kilcornan. The park is approximately 600 acres of woodland.

There is a large car park as well as walking trails, a playground area and picnic tables. There is also a camping area and restaurant. The remains of the big house which dates to the late 17th century overlooks the man-made lake. The house was destroyed by a fire in 1941.

Most grand houses have a reputation of being haunted – Curraghchase house is no exception. Most, if not all, of these stories can be taken with a grain of salt. But, and there is always a but, there is one story that is harder to explain.

This story comes from a diary written in the 1930s by Veronica and Mary Guillebaud who stayed at the estate for the summer months. Poltergeist activity was so strong that Mrs De Vere, the lady of the house, and the servants were becoming very alarmed. The sound of footsteps, doors opening and closing, and furniture being moved in locked rooms were a cause of concern.

Eventually, Mrs De Vere contacted her father – Bishop Hadley Moule of Durham, England. She explained to him her fears of the unusual and frightening activity in the house. He arrived and conducted a “private service of exorcism”. He said there were “restless spirits but not at all distressed or worrying”. Unfortunately, the diary does not mention any more about the outcome.

Another story concerns a man called John Leahy. In the first week of April 1811, John Leahy passed away following a two-day illness. What was remarkable about John was the fact that he was born in the year 1699. That would make him 112 years of age upon his death. He commenced his servitude with the owner of Curraghchase House - Vere Hunt Esq - as a groom in the year 1730.

He remained working in Curraghchase for upwards of eighty years. The last ten years of his life was spent living in a cottage built for him on the estate. He was married eight times and had children by seven of them.

His eighth and last marriage was at the ripe old age of 103 years. He declared that he “never suffered a day’s illness or an hour’s pain unless for the death of a friend or occasionally for the loss of a wife”.

Another story which has made its way through the generations tells of the 21st of December 1941 - a very cold and frosty evening. On that night, fires would have been lit early in the big house in Curraghchase. The people in the house that night were Mrs De Vere and two female servants. Her husband Stephen had passed away in 1936. At around 2am one of the servants, Kitty Burke, was awoken by the sound of a bell ringing.

The house operated a system of bells in each room upstairs and downstairs. A box of indicators on the wall specified which room the bell was ringing in. It was the library bell. Kitty, the servant girl, went to the library door and noticed a lot of smoke coming under the door from the room. She knocked on Mrs De Vere’s door and upon getting no answer went in and called her. Mrs De Vere said, “what’s wrong?” Kitty replied, “there’s something happening in the library. There’s a lot of smoke”. Mrs De Vere, in a calm voice said, “we have to stay cool Kitty”.

We now know that the fire started in the library and was probably caused by a spark from the fire. All three occupants got out of the house safely. The fire brigade was called but got lost on the way and when they did finally arrive, they discovered that fire hoses were too short to reach from the lake to the house.

The fire travelled from the library on the left side of the building stopping before it reached the saloon on the right side. The damage to the house was so extensive that Mrs De Vere had to move out into a smaller house on the estate which is now the scout house. She died in 1959 and is buried in Adare.

These are just some of the stories from the past concerning Curraghchase. Today, the forest park is a haven for families to enjoy the scenery, the walks, and the food.

It was once said that “stories create community, enable us to see through the eyes of other people and open us to the claims of others.”

There are many stories to be told from the Shannon Estuary Way. If you feel you have a story to tell, why not get in touch by emailing aoibheann@thetourismspace.com.