The Many Lives of Woodlock House, IL’s Irish Headquarters

The car weaved in and out of the fog, meandering along the winding country roads of Waterford County en route to Portlaw—a tiny southeastern town no one’s ever heard of.

It was my first morning in Ireland, and we were headed to International Living’s headquarters, where all the sausage in these pages, so to speak, is made.

As we pulled through the iron gates of the property, the “office” appeared through the trees—a vast, two-story-overbasement mansion encircled by sculpted gardens, silent graveyards, and watchful crows. Lots and lots of crows.

Woodlock’s original owner, textile baron George Malcomson, built the house in 1864 in the small town of Portlaw, just up the River Suir from Waterford. The industrious Malcomsons moved to the “sunny south east” of Ireland around the 17th century. They set up shop… a corn factory then a cotton mill… then built a thriving town. (The Malcomson mill is credited with helping Portlaw residents survive the Irish Potato Famine.)

The family didn’t stop at manufacturing textiles. They built a canal linking the factory at Portlaw directly to the River Suir and the Waterford port. From there, Malcomson-owned ships carried their exports to all corners of the globe. It was an industrial empire carved into the Irish countryside.

When George’s wife Emily—the last of the Malcomsons—passed away in 1883, Woodlock House was bequeathed to the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Cluny, who had cared for her in her final days. For the next 130 years, the rambling estate served as a convent and nursing home for Portlaw residents.

In 2014, the Agora Group (our parent publisher) purchased the dilapidated property as the new headquarters for IL. Rehabilitated to its timeless grandeur, the company moved in September 2016. But it isn’t just the cavernous stone basement, sweeping staircases, and chandeliers that give this old house its character—the walls and gardens echo with the stories of previous occupants; many of whom were laid to rest nearby. (There’s a beautiful guest apartment on the first floor, but few dare to stay alone overnight…) —Holly Andrew

— Holly Andrew