1896 – Brownswood, Co. Wexford

An eclectic brick and Dumfries red stone confection designed for Baroness Gray (formerly Mrs James McLaren Smith, later 19th Baroness Gray in 1895 after the death of her uncle, and the mother of Eileen Gray). Sold in the 1920s it has been used for a variety of purposes, and is now a school, but remains largely intact externally.

“This residence, now completed for the Baroness Gray, is really an extensive addition to the original house, which was a plain, square, roughcast building (with a door in the centre and windows on each side, a type of house common to that part of the country). Owing to the nature of the site, it was found best to retain the old house as a centre and add wings on either side; this was also desirable from the fact that the house has one of the finest and most extensive views in the country, and it was a great matter to have all the principal rooms commanding the view. The arched recesses on the top of each able are also designed especially for the view.

Unfortunately, the plan was not sent to us in time for publication. The principal feature is the large hall and staircase (which occupies the position of the old courtyard). The principal entrance is now in the end, being more sheltered than the front—the old front entrance is now the garden entrance. The two front rooms of the original house are now the library and ante-drawing room, and the two large bays at each end are respectively the dining room and drawing room.

The general walling is rough cast, with Dumfries stone dressings and red brick. The roofs are covered with Broseley tiles. All the works have been carried out from the designs of Mr. William Wallace.”
The Builder, August 29 1896