Inchmore House also known as St Anthony’s Clara, was built in 1846 and was the home of the Goodbody family, who were a successful business family. Robert Goodbody who lived there, founded, Goodbody’s Stockbrokers in Dublin.
In the 1890s Marconi, who was a family friend, demonstrated his new invention, the radio, in the house. There was an audience of possible investors invited to see it.
In 1934, the Franciscan Brothers purchased the house and used it as a boarding school. It was then known as St Anthony’s. They built a church and dormitories. At this stage there was over 20,000 sq foot between the house, dormitories and the Church. The Franciscan Brothers left in 1990.
Interesting Links
When I was researching Information about Inchmore House, St Anthonys, Clara, I found this article on BuildingsOfIreland.ie, Click Here
A lot of information is on the Offaly History Facebook page, Click Here
As I write this, the house is up for sale, here is the listing. Click Here
Images from Inchmore House, St Anthony’s May 2021
Hello Donal,
I would just like to thank you for your Inchmore House video on YouTube. I was briefly a boarder there [September 1981 – March 1982], and your video brought back a lot of memories.
The ”Big House” [as we called Inchmore House] housed the brothers as well as some “privileged” senior year boys. The rest of us slept in the dormitories. Watching your video, I could even smell the Jeyes Fluid, which we used to clean the floors and the toilets.
St Anthony’s was a surreal experience; it functioned as a self-sufficient little microcosm; most of what we ate was produced on the monks’ farm and we, the boarders did all the “housework” in the place [with the exception of cooking, maintenance, etc.].
The classrooms were in a single storey building across from the dorms at the beginning of “Misery” as we called the long walk way at the back, which was an asylum for the smokers among us as well as for those of us who used to dodge the compulsory football practice :) Weren’t we scamps?
Once again, thank you very much and keep them coming
All the best from Prague
Ian
As a boarder way back in the mid to late 70’s, I still have vivid memories of life at St. Anthony’s. Some great and interesting characters amongst the pupils. For those who attended in this era, the names Squeezy, the Waa, Daddy Cool, The Bop and Speedy will most likely resonate or trigger some recollections of the time. Sad to see the building and infrastructure so dilapidated and run down. Hard to believe that so much time has passed but great to have come across your video Donal, it brought me right back to another era and period of my life… Thank you for that …..Brian
Hi Donal,
I came across your video of Inchmore house. It’s such a pity that the house has been vandalized; I visited the house in 2016 and found it to be in good order. I was fortunate enough to gain access and was able to travel through the entire of the property, which also had the Crow’s Nest, wherein Marconi performed experiments.
I was a boarder in the house from 1985 to 1990. And I must say that I had a very positive experience of my time there with the Francisco brothers. When I arrived, the statues were moving at the grotto to the front and Fr. Molloy’s death was been investigated to the back of the property. I subsequently was given important task like serving the brothers etc. and in doing so gained trust and familiarity. As time went by I had he run of the place.
Following my graduation in 1990 I subsequently remained in contact with the principal of the school whose name is Brother Charles Conway and he walks very much in the footsteps of his predecessor Saint Francis. A previous subscriber mentioned that school was essentially a microcosm. And in many ways, that is accurate. I recall been tasked with various jobs. All of which I did with good grace and acquired skills that survive to this day. I’m able to run a kitchen, prepare meals and maintain a house in good order, all of which were skills that I obtained during my time in boarding school. On a Saturday and Sunday with permission we were allowed down town to Clara. Overtime, we became acquainted with the townsfolk who, by and large, were sound.
Daragh