160 year old Cobh redbrick house and mews with waterfront views for €1.5m
Riverview, Rushbrook, Cobh
€1.5m
Size
207 sq m
+ 98 sq m
Bedrooms
4 + 2
Bathrooms
3 + 2
BER
G + B
Don’t let your teens read this article if you’re buying this Rushbrooke house in case they’re ‘inspired’ to get up to the same shenanigans as the ones who grew up here over the last four or more decades.The younger members of the household at Riverview House on Cobh Island made the absolute most of waterfront life including socialising, swimming, sailing — and on occasion nipping across the water (without parental knowledge) to parties or discos at Glenbrook in Passage West.Riverview house was built in rather more sedate times around 1860 and was part of the Smith Barry estate. It was offered for rent around that time and was later purchased by a Mrs Dorothy Bell of Fota House.It is believed to have changed hands again in 1964 for around £11,000.The current owners moved from Dublin to work in the pharma chem industry and bought the house in 1979.The now late Bob and Máirín Rutledge had three children who are now selling the property as they have their own homes.One daughter said: “This was very much a family home — it was the central point for wider family and friends and there were always people in and out here. We had christenings here, 21sts and my sister got married in the garden here in 1990.”For that wedding a marquee was placed on the tennis courts which had been built by a previous owner on what had been an orchard in the 1970s.Those tennis courts did get great use and the mother of the family was actually involved in the Munster Tennis Council: “When there were tournaments on in Rushbrook it was even used as a spillover court — we would sometimes come home and find people playing there.”But of course with this literal waterside location, water activities were always more important. “We had a windsurfer and could swim off the pier too. We had a very small boat and could pop over to visit friends in Monkstown or even sneak out to the disco in Glenbrook.” [The late DJ Vincent Hanley, aka Fab Vinnie, mixed music at the Club Hotel on occasion]It was always in good fun and worked out well: “We were always out on the water. I had to be ‘rescued’ from the channel on more than one occasion by a friend nearby.” Even the family dog took advantage of the waterfront location: “Our own dog would go swimming from the little beach here and would travel up to the former Rinn Ronan Hotel where he would get some treats and swim home again.”New owners would be able to have their own boat mooring right outside.River View House Rushbrooke available for rent in 1866Riverview may have originally been constructed as a holiday villa, overlooking what was then a fashionable waterfront retreat. Across the river in Glenbrook stood the Royal Victorian Baths and Hydropathic Establishment — a luxurious Victorian wellness destination offering Turkish baths and sea air therapies.An old photo of Riverview House currently hangs within the house The house originally had a stable and coachhouse on the grounds — near where the driveway curves down from the main road past the little beach. There is now a two-bed mews here with a good-sized kitchen and living room.While the ‘second home’ is more modern (converted in 2008 and renovated again since then) there are many original features in the main house still — from the beautiful warm red brick to the ornately carved porch, gothic doors and intricate stair banisters.There’s a conservatory... giving views in every direction out over the water, a formal dining room and a kitchen with a range, and an old-style clothes airer mounted on the high ceiling. Those high ceilings are a feature throughout and there are beautiful shutters on the tall windows in the downstairs living areas.Upstairs, the bedrooms are a charming blend of sizes with ceilings of various pitches and angles and some are dual aspect.The mews or guest lodge — which could be a source of income or a base for multi-generational living — has a more neutral style and decor including a kitchen with plenty storage and a living room with views of the water and of the main house.There is lush planting across the whole property but the garden really comes into its own at the Cobh end where there’s a glass house, and palms, apple trees, camelias and plenty more shrubs.Low hedging separates the gardens from the long narrow strip of foreshore and there’s an old iron gate and steps down to the water’s edge.Johanna Murphy of Johanna Murphy & Sons praises the property's secluded nature with the high wall on the road side and the sweeping driveway down to the water level. "It's got everything here really — the water access and those views and you're only minutes from Cobh in one direction and a short drive to Cork city or Cork airport in the other direction."The property, with a guide price of €1.5million, has been the backdrop for decades of family milestones, including 21st birthdays, christenings, and a garden wedding and now the owners say it’s ready for new life to make this their base. VERDICT: True to its name, Riverview House delivers unmatched, panoramic views of the water and a lifestyle defined by coastal charm and history.
