A Wexford farmer who chose to live without electricity and running water has left a precious legacy to students of history, folklore and architecture.
Mr Seamus Kirwan of Mayglass, two miles from Bridgetown, died six years ago aged 85 having lived since childhood in a two-storey, mud-walled thatched house built in the early 18th century.
During the electrification of rural Ireland in the 1940s and 1950s, Mr Kirwan opted to maintain the lifestyle to which he was accustomed. In later years, his only concession to modern living was the occasional visit to his neighbours, Leo and Eileen Casey, Mr Casey recalls. "He didn't even get a radio until 1986 or 1987. But he was very well read and knew the history of the area better than anybody."
The house, which Mr Kirwan left to the Caseys, provides a rare insight into Irish rural life over three centuries. Members of the UCD Folklore Department were aware of its significance before Mr Kirwan's death; and when funds became available in 1997, Duchas, the Heritage Council, took on the task of restoring and maintaining it.
Ms Mary Hanna, the council's architecture officer, says that by then the house was falling into serious disrepair. "It was nearly gone. If we hadn't intervened it would not have lasted another year."
A working group comprising the Heritage Council, Duchas, the National Museum and the School of Architecture at UCD was established to oversee the restoration. The late Mr Christopher Zeuner, of the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum in Chichester, advised on the project.
Restoration is almost complete and the next step, says Ms Hanna, is to decide how the house can best be allowed to "tell its story". It has already been the focal point for a series of workshops, funded by the EU Raphael programme, on traditional building skills, and other educational projects are planned.
It is not intended, however, to market the house as a tourist attraction. "This was decided because of the cultural significance of the farmstead. It is too fragile to have hordes of people visiting," Ms Hanna said.
Mr Kirwan's legacy, she adds, will be appreciated by anyone interested in history, vernacular architecture and traditional skills such as thatching and mud-walling. "He was the kind of person who didn't throw away anything. He would mend and fix and make good whatever he had." Besides the house and outbuildings, much of the 18th and 19th century furniture also remained intact.
Mr Michael Strarrett, chief executive of the Heritage Council, says Mayglass is one of the most significant conservation projects undertaken by Duchas. "Contact with such a tangible link to our past far outweighs lessons from any history book."
More information on the Mayglass project is available on the website www.mayglass-2000.ie