Survey Data
Reg No
15401123
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Social, Technical
Original Use
Railway station
In Use As
House
Date
1850 - 1860
Coordinates
239946, 261509
Date Recorded
11/12/2004
Date Updated
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Description
Detached gable-fronted two-bay two-storey former railway station and station master's house, built c.1855. Now in use as a private dwelling. Pitched artificial slate roof with wide overhanging eaves, cast-iron rainwater goods and three moulded brick chimneystacks (one modern). Constructed of snecked limestone over projecting chamfered cut stone plinth with rusticated limestone quoins to corners. Cut stone plaque to gable-fronted section facing railway tracks (west) with carved inscription 'Clonhugh'. Square-headed window openings with surviving two-over-two pane timber sliding sash windows with cut stone sills to north elevation, replacement uPVC and concrete sills to modified main elevation (west). Square-headed doorcase to west elevation with replacement glazed timber door. Situated adjacent to Mullingar to Sligo railway line, close to the shores of Lough Owel. Modern single-storey extension to southeast side with overhanging eaves and timber casement windows.
Appraisal
An appealing and slightly unusual rural railway station, which retains its character and basic form. This small station was originally built by the Midland and Great Western Railway Company to serve the Mullingar to Sligo line, which opened as far as Longford town in 1855. This station closed in 1947. The building has been modified to suit its current function as a private dwelling (occupied by the wife of the late station master) but retains its originally charm. It is well-built in attractive snecked limestone, a common feature of mid nineteenth-century railway architecture, with good stone quoins to the corners. The tall brick chimneystacks are an interesting feature, forming an aesthetically pleasing contrast with the gray snecked limestone walls. This station may have been built to designs by George Wilkinson, who was responsible for the design a number of train stations in the area for the Midland and Great Western Railway Company at this time.