The Grove. or Faulkner's was a 'gentry' house on Charles Street, Castlebar which has since been knocked down and a housing estate also called The Grove built on the site and grounds.
It was owned by the Faulkner family until it was sold in 1993 and then developed into the current housing estate. It was the residence of James Faulkner whose father was Anthony, lessee of tolls and customs for Lord Lucan. The founder of the local newspaper in 1828, Lord Frederick Cavendish, challenged Anthony Faulkner in court over the issue of tolls and what he believed were injustices. Faulkner then retired but during the famine, Lucan's men evicted tenants who were in arrears with their rents except for Faulkner and his family. James took over from his father and appeared to have a social conscience and was seen to help the poor in the area. He ran many businesses in the area. He was described as “Connaught's Merchant Prince” in his obituary in 1911.
Before its demolition, it was surrounded by a wrought iron fence and gate with beech trees growing around it. Older members of the community tell that it had a 'musical wall' in that whenever you ran a stone along the top of the wall, lovely sounds could be heard thus giving the name of a musical wall. It also had a coach house and stables on the grounds a well as an orchard.
