In 1780, John Dawson, Viscount Carlow and 1st Earl of Portarlington commissioned James Gandon to design a new mansion on his Co. Laois estate. Work progressed on the house from 1790, and the landscape was re-designed, but by the time of Dawson’s death in 1798, only the shell of the house was completed. Dawson’s son, the 2nd Earl of Portarlington, employed several architects to complete the work. From 1822 to 1831 Arthur and John Williamson produced designs for a kitchen wing and the north front portico which were unrealized. However, their scheme for the entrance portico was implemented. Lewis Vulliamy took over in the early 1830s. Vulliamy exhibited his designs for Emo at the Royal Academy in 1834 and produced working drawings for the north portico, as well as unexecuted designs kitchen wing. The 3rd Earl, who succeeded in 1845, employed William Caldbeck to decorate the rotunda, drawing room and library, build a bachelor’s wing above a new kitchen block and erect gate lodges. This work was completed in 1861.
The complex architectural evolution of the house is reflected in the drawings in Emo Court Collection. These have now been digitised as are available via the IAA’s online catalogue.
