Moore Hall is a superb ruined manor house set in a woodland park in County Mayo, Ireland. Now derelict, the site has been completely overgrown and offers a most unusual setting that would fascinate anyUrbex enthusiast. But be prepared: the manor house was recently bought out, and is to be converted into a tourist attraction!
Moore Hall is located on Muckloon Hill, overlooking Lough Carra lake.
It was designed by John Roberts, a Waterford architect who also designed Tyrone House in County Galway. The building was designed in 1792 for the prestigious Moore family, who occupied the house for several generations.
This family is considered a particularly influential clan. A member of the local aristocracy, many of its members have left their mark on history!
These include :
A wealthy wine and brandy merchant, he was responsible for the construction of Moore Hall.
He studied in France and became a lawyer. With the rebellion of 1798, he returned to Mayo and was appointed President of the Republic of Connacht in Castlebar by General Humbert. Thus, John Moore was the first president of an Irish republic, albeit for a very brief interval. He was captured and, although initially sentenced to death, his sentence was later commuted to deportation. He died in Waterford’s Royal Oak Tavern on December 6, 1799.
He was educated in the Catholic faith at Cambridge University. At the height of the Irish famine in 1846, he entered a horse called Coranna in the Chester Gold Cup competition and pocketed £17,000 from bets placed on the horse. Very generous, he used his earnings to import thousands of tons of grain and livestock to help his Irish tenants strangled by the Famine. We still remember on the Moore estate that no one was evicted from their home for non-payment of rent during hard times, and that no one died there during the Famine. George Henry is buried in the family vault at Kiltoom on the Moore Hall estate and is often hailed as a true hero!
Above all, he is celebrated for his literary works! Considered a leading member of the Irish literary revival, he is said to have welcomed to Moore Hall such great writers as Lady Gregory and William Butler Yeats.
He was a senator and colonel. In particular, he is famous for having served with the Connaught Rangers during the Boer War. He is also said to be concerned about human rights in South Africa.
Today, Moore Hall has been abandoned following a terrible fire on February 1, 1923, during the Irish Civil War.
Since then, the mansion has literally been taken over by the surrounding countryside. Trees, bushes and other vegetation have taken over the building, growing inside, along the walls and through the windows.
Today, the manor house has no roof.
But that’s about to change. In 2018, the Coillte forestry company bought the estate with its manor house and plans to renovate it to make it a major tourist attraction!
We’ll have to wait a few more years to discover it, but there are plans to renovate the walled gardens and create new facilities for visitors: walkways, seating, play areas and an exhibition telling the story of Moore Hall and the Moore family.
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