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This 'French Chateau' is in Clonakilty... and it's a beaut

Henry Ford’s family once were tenant farmers here.

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HENRY FORD ONCE tried to create his own industrial town, Fordlandia, in the Amazon rainforest.

It was a failure. Which begs the question – why didn’t he just head back to his ancestral home in Ireland?

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The birthplace of his father William, was the colourful, multi-faceted Lisselan Estate, which even today looks like a dream to live in.

Henry’s grandfather, John Ford, was a tenant farmer within the estate, who left Ireland during the famine.

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Today, the estate is a home that John and William could only have dreamed of. Designed in a French chateau style, it’s located on the banks of the Argideen River.

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The main house is over 10,000 square feet in size, on 127 hectares. Built between 1851 and 1853 by William Bence-Jones, today it’s also home to the Henry Ford Ancestral site.

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The 30 acres of gardens are expansive and impeccably laid out, with some private stretches along the River Argideen for salmon and sea trout fishing, or just basking in the glow of having a private stretch of river.

There’s also the Lisselan Golf Club in the area, for those who are fans of that game.

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If you’re more of an indoorsy person, the huge rooms will have you itching to plan a soirée.

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So Henry Ford might have missed out on building his on Fordlandia in Ireland, but whatever lucky person scoops up Lisselan estate will be living the dream life indeed – and no need to head to the rainforest for it.

Lisselan Estate is for sale through Sherry Fitzgerald O’Neill on Daft.ie

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