This article is from page 25 of the 2012-01-17 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 25 JPG
THE links between the first President of the United States and an historic North Clare home will be explored in a new programme to be aired this week.
Located in New Quay, Mount Vernon has battled the elements of the Atlantic Ocean since 1788. It was built by Colonel Persse, a friend of the first president of the United States, George Washington. Persse’s grand-nephew, Ireland’s greatest art collector, Hugh Lane, bought the house in 1880. When the Lusitania was torpedoed and sank in 1915, Lane was on board and sank with the ship and his latest collection of Monet, Ruben and Rembrandt paintings. The house was passed onto Lane’s aunt, Lady Augusta Gregory, one of the most pivotal figures in the Irish cultural renaissance. The history of Mount Vernon will be the subject of Cé a Chóna igh I mo Thea chsa , a new show by TG4 which will be aired on Thursday, January 19 at 10pm.
The 12-part series looks at the hidden histories of some of Ireland’s best-known homes. The show is presented by veteran traveller and broadcaster Manchán Magan.
Manchán will look at some of Mount Vernon’s most famous guests – WB Yeats, George Russell, Sean O’Casey, JM Synge and George Bernard Shaw – and he’ll find out why Yeats dedicated his famous poem to Lady Gregory’s nephew.
According to Manchán, “Every old house wants to tell its story, but it just doesn’t have the words. You need to help it speak. It wants you to, and if you take on the challenge, you feel as though it’s following you every step of the way, helping you at times, directing you towards sources of information that you never would have guessed; but hindering you at times too. Houses have their secrets, and the thrill is getting beyond these to uncover a new perspective on an old world.”