Coole Park/Gort, Kilmacduagh and Kiltartan

W.B. Yeats said that Coole Park was the most beautiful place in the world. Come and see for yourself.Lady Gregory (1852-1932) made an imense contribution to the life of this parish. She has been called the mother of folklore. There would have been no Abbey Theatre but for Lady Gregory. The trees are in their autumn beauty, The woodland paths are dry. (from W.B.Y.'s poem The Wild Swans at Coole).

Coole House was built c. 1770 and demolished by the State in 1941. All that remains are the outlines of the foundations.

Here traveller, scholar, poet take your standWhen all those rooms and passages are gone. (from W.B.Y.'s poem Coole Park).

The entrance avenue is lined with ilex trees planted c. 1860.

At the entrance to the lake, a horse coupled to a timber shaft was driven round and round at the suction pump until a servant would ring a bell at the house to let it be known that the tank was full.

In recent years a sundial was erected in the Garden and unveiled by Lady Gregory's grand-daughters, Anne de Winton and Catherine Kennedy.The bust of Maecenas, a distinguished literary patron, was brought to Coole from Italy early in the nineteenth century. It is very appropriate because Lady Gregory was a generous patron of the arts.

The Autograph Tree, a splendid copper beech, is probably the best known tree in Ireland. On it are inscribed the names of those who were involved in the Literary Revival at the beginning of the twentieth century.

The building in the cobbled stable yard serves as a Visitors' Centre and cafe. The centre deservedly attracts thousands of visitors each year and gives the visitor a real flavour of the hospitality that characterised Coole House.Limekilns were common throughout Ireland. Lime was spread as a fertilizer on the farmlands of Coole.