The Sproules of Ardvarny House, County Fermanagh

 If you look up Ardvarny, Fermanagh in Google Books, you will see lots of references, it is even in Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry. All of these entries are for one Edward-Eyre Atthill esq. J.P who lived in Ardvarney House from about about 1841. Edward-Eyre himself does not appear in the Sproule deeds for Ardvarny House, but the deeds do let us know exactly how he came to live there.

For before Edward-Eyre Atthill, there were indeed Sproules in Ardvarny House. The Post Chaise Companion of 1807 tells us that “About a mile from Kesh is Ardvarny,  the seat of John Sproule Esq.”  This travel book of the day mentioned all significant ‘seats’, some of which could actually be visited by the touring gentry. John Sproule of Ardvarny House was one of these, even though John himself  was still a very young man in 1807.

John Sproule of Ardvarny was the 4^th son of John ‘Jack Roe’ Sproule of Curraghamulkin and he is the child of his second wife, Elizabeth Edwards. He was born in 1779 so John was only 27 at the time of the Post Chase entry.

It was John’s grandfather, Joseph Sproule of Curraghamulkin, who had first a least to land in Ardvarny. There are two townlands there, Ardvarny West and Ardvarny East, and over the years, the Sproules bought and sold different plots of Ardvarny land in both townlands.  It was Joseph, 5^th son of Cornet Andrew Spreull, who held the first lease. We learn this in what I call the ‘Long Lease’, which is dated 24 Jan 1822 and it refers to many previous leases.

Joseph Sproule of Curraghamulkin must have died some time around 1803, for in a deed dated 1805, his land is being divided between two of his heirs. Clearly, Joseph’s Ardvarny land has been left jointly to his son John ‘Jack Roe’ Sproule of Curraghamulkin, and to his son-in-law,  Nehemiah Edwards of Kilcroagh. The 1805 deed, referred to in the Long Lease,  is a deed of partition, where the two boys are dividing up the land between them.  Again in the Long Lease, we learn that shortly after this, Nehemiah Edwards sold his portion Ardvarny to Edward Sproule of Glenvale, brother to John ‘Jack Roe’.

So at this point, 1805ish, John ‘Jack Roe’ Sproule is living in Curraghamulkin, and Edward, his brother, is living in Glenvale, also in Curraghamulkin. It therefore has to have been the young John Sproule Jun, son of John ‘Jack Roe’ who was living in Ardvarny House, Ardvarny West, Fermanagh.

John Sproule Jun was still living in Ardvarny House when his father John ‘Jack Roe’ died in early 1814, but he is very quickly beginning to sell his inherittance. In a deed dated 13 April 1814 John Sproule Jun John Sproule of Ardvarny sells part of his property to his uncle Edward Sproule of Glenvale. (Long Lease) Why would he do that? Why would he sell his inheritance? I can only speculate that John Jun. was in Ardvarny when he was very young, and, perhaps, has got himself into financial problems.

It continues in 1817, when John Jun. sells the remainder of Ardvarny to his uncle Edward. (21 Aug 1817 Long Lease) By 1819, John Sproule of Ardvarny West is now living full time in the home of his uncle, and he has become John Sproule of Glenvale.  We know that John later went to live in Bearharnois County, Quebec, Canada.

In this deed dated 4 Sep 1819,  Elizabeth Sproule, widow of John ‘Jack Roe’ Sproule had some Ardvarny land too, and she is selling it to Edward Sproule of Glenvale.

Now at this point, Edward Sproule of Glenvale seems to have all of the Sproule Ardvarny property and land, but he doesn’t keep it for long. In 1822 Edward starts selling to Lowther Brien, and in 1826 he sells more. In 1830, his son Harper Sproule of Glenvale, sells the last piece of Ardvarny to Lowther Brien. Edward Sproule, Harper and other family members emigrate to New Brunswick, Canada.

Now Lowther Brien has the whole of the Sproule Ardvarny land. Lowther Brien was a lawyer with a practice in Dublin. He was married to a granddaughter of a Curraghmulkin Sproule, Margaret Harpur of Aghadulla. He and his family went to live in Ardvarny House, I believe this was in 1822. It was there that his daughter, Jane, was born in 1823.

Lowther Brien died on 27 Feb 1841, and his heirs were his three daughters. Jane Brien married Edward-Eyre Atthill, the gentleman mentioned in Burke’s Peerage, on 23 Oct 1847.

And this was how Edward-Eyre Atthill esq. came to live in Ardvarny House.

 

 Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry, Volume 1 1875 P.37, Publisher Harison, Pall Mall 

 Post Chaise Companion, Digital Library@Villanova University, The post chaise companion: or, Traveller's directory through Ireland 1807 

Age of John Sproule of Ardvarny , he is named as a ‘life’ in deed  30 Oct 1793. Public Records of Northern Ireland, PRONI Reference : D674/19

‘Long Lease’  -  785103 531038 Registry of Deeds, Familysearch.org dated 24 Jan 1822 between Edward Sproule of Glenvale in the County of Tyrone Gent and Lowther Brien, City of Dublin, Attorney at law. Transcription of this Lease

4 Sep 1819 Lease - 841269 564269 Registry of Deeds, Familysearch.org dated 4 Sep 1819 Elizabeth Sproule of Cornear widow of John Sproule of Cornear deceased of said place and Edward Sproule of Glenvale Transcription of this Lease

4 Sep 1830  Lease - 863 398 573398 Registry of Deeds, Familysearch.org Harper Sproule of Glenvale selling a piece of Ardvarny to Lowther Brien. Transcription of this Deed