William Conolly was born the son of an inn keeper, but became one of the wealthiest, most powerful politicians in Ireland. He was an attorney and later became Speaker of the House of Commons in Ireland. He married Katherine Conyngham. Katherine was known for having "Conolly's Folly" built during the famine of 1740-41. Building the obelisk provided jobs for hundreds of the poor people of Cellbridge.
William and Katherine never had children, so on the death of William, the estate was divided between Katherine and William James Conolly, who was the nephew of William Conolly. After Katherine's death, Willliam James Conolly lived in Castletown for a couple of years until his death, and then Castletown House went to his son, Tom Conolly.
Lady Louisa Lennox Conolly (1743-1821)was married to Tom Conolly at the age of 16 and she redecorated the house throughout the 1760s and 1770s.
One day while Tom Conolly was out hunting, he met a "dark stranger" and invited him back to his home. After dinner Tom and the stranger played cards, with the stranger winning every hand. Tom thought the stranger was cheating so he dropped a napkin on the floor so he could look under the table but when he looked, he saw that his guest had removed his boots and his feet were cloven shaped and hairy. Tom believed him to be the devil, so he hastily summoned the local priest. When the priest arrived and saw the devil, he hurled his bible at the devil but missed and cracked a mirror. In fright, the devil stomped his cloven foot and vanished up the chimney, leaving behind a split hearthstone. This hearthstone has been replaced, but the crack just comes back. The cracked mirror and hearthstone are still displayed to this day.
Tom Conolly and Lady Louisa also never had any children. Along with supervising the redecoration of Castletown house, Louisa also established a school on the site of her husbands kennels inside the gates of Castletown. She also had a new Protestant church erected inside Castletown gates to replace one that had been destroyed by fire. She survived her husband by eighteen years dying in August 1821. Her nephew George Napier left the following account of her funeral, which captures the esteem, in which Louisa was held by her tenantry and servants:
…"...as soon as day light appeared, the people began to collect in the park in front of the house …many thousands were assembled…many from thirty and forty miles off, so well was she known…I ordered the great door to be thrown open and the procession moved from the hall…the moment the body appeared…one long loud cry of despair issued from the assembled multitude…the coffin was lowered into the vault; then again the that thrilling cry was heard, but louder and longer…a general rush was made to the vault, each striving to get a last look at the coffin which contained the remains of One they almost revered as a saint."
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