Prospect House
NAME PROSPECT/PROSPECT HALL
AREA LOCATION ROEBUCK, Willowfield Park, Goatstown.
MAP LOCATION OSI maps of 1838-1845 and 1898-1913 place it in the townland of Roebuck and
it is annotated as Prospect and Prospect Hall respectively.
GENERAL
‘There is upon this holding an extensive mansion house consisting of parlour, drawing room and
several other reception rooms with five bed chambers and dressing rooms, kitchen and servants
apartments in the basement story, a walled garden and ornamental plantations, farm yard and
stabling for six horses, two coach houses all in excellent order.’ (Brassington 1832)
This building had single-story bow-fronted wings but these were considerably altered when they were
raised to the same height as the main house. Gaspar Gabrielli came from Italy and did some work for
Lord Cloncurry. Sir Robert Harty, friend and political affiliate of Cloncurry, may have employed
Gabrielli to decorate his rooms in Prospect and his town house, 49 Merrion Square ‘where the
panoramic scenes and landscapes fill the walls from the dado to the cornice’.
YEAR BUILT circa 1790
VALUATION In 1912 the valuation was 122 pounds and in the 1901 census it is noted as
having 17 rooms occupied by family.
ARCHITECT Unknown
SOURCES Thom’s directories, contemporaneous newspapers, OSI Maps and NAI Census & Wills
OCCUPANTS
1783 Meadow and pasture to let from the Earl of Pembroke
Arthur de Burgh Crofton
Thomas Dillon
John Duffy
1814 Madame de Geverac
1826 - 1832 Sir Robert Way Harty
1832 - 1838 Robert Manders
1839 - 1841 Henry Darley
1842 - 1852 Richard Watkins
1857 - 1881 Sir Robert Harty
1881 - 1902 Elizabeth Henrietta Harty
1903 - 1909 Major Scott
1910 - 1911 Edward Mitchell -Asst Land Commissioner
1926 - 1938 Walter Crosbie Butler
1926 - 1941 Isabella Catherine Butler (youngest daughter of Rev Thomas Jameson of Finglas)
1951 For Sale
1954 - 1969 Central Remedial Clinic
1970 - 2018 St Michael's House
STAFF
1901 Harriet Connolly - Cook
Florence Vennard - Housemaid
1901 - 1902 Andrew Diver - Butler
1911 Margaret Irvine - General servant
CURRENT
STATUS Extant
CONTRIBUTOR © June Bow, Catherine Brugha & Karen Poff
DATE July 2018