Owners to turn historic Ballyshannon house into renovated family home
Kevin Sheridan and his wife Aisling Finn to renovate Ballyshannon property of formerly of 1910 British MP Edward Joseph Kelly
A historic Ballyshannon building that was once home to a Westminster MP is to be restored into a new family home.
Condon House, located on The Mall in Ballyshannon, has been bought by a locally based couple, Kevin Sheridan, from Longford, and his wife, Aisling Finn, from Ballyshannon.
The early 19th-century property was once the home of Edward Joseph Kelly, who was elected to the British Parliament as the elected MP for East Donegal in 1910. The house later became the home of Dr Frederick William Condon, of whom the building takes its name.
Kevin told Donegal Live: “My wife is from Ballyshannon, and it is a house we would have seen over the years.
“We have always admired it, up until 2022, when the renovation from Donegal County Council brought it back into a decent state. It came up for sale and when we viewed the house, we fell in love with it.
“Once we saw it for sale, we started to look at the history of it and there is a good bit of material on the Architectural Buildings of Ireland, and read up on it.
“We started reading about the history, from the Kelly family, who were the provisional occupants, and who would have had a famous son who was an MP and they were wine merchants. It is a varied and interesting history from the Kellys’ time, right up until the Condons.”
The new owners plan to restore the building back to its former glory and turn Condon House into the new family home. As part of the renovations, a new Instagram page has been created to detail the renovations as they happen.
When asked about the new social media channel, Kevin replied: “I researched a few people who did renovations to get their feedback on their own renovations.
“They all said doing renovations was always an overwhelming thing. It is to connect with experts to give advice, and to connect to people in Ballyshannon with the building.
“We have had a positive response from the people of Ballyshannon. We would have talked to people from the town. They were positive and interested in it. It is to connect people and to show people with what we are doing.
“This building is part of the fabric of Ballyshannon for a long time, so we are happy to show the journey with people.”
An appreciation was also expressed for the work done to help save Condon House prior to the purchase, as the new owners apply for grants to help renovate the property.
Kevin said: “The building has received grant funding previously, and we are applying for grants again.
“We have received €5,000 from the Department for the conservation report. We were delighted to get that.
“Now we are applying for the Historic Structure Fund and the Built Heritage Investment Scheme.
“My key point from the grants is that this building would have fallen to the ground, apart from the good work of the council. The council’s and government’s intervention saved the building, and we are applying for more funding because there is an awful lot to do. It is very competitive, but it would be great if we get something.”