[3] It represents one of a few cases in which a model village was established in the southern regions of Ireland, as they were more commonly found in the North.

The concept of enhancing the ones personal development and creating an environment in which one could live a healthy lifestyle was at the core of the creation of the village, as the Malcolmsons founded a number of social institutions in which their residents could grow as individuals and spend their free time.

This central open space (also known as the Square) housed different types of institutions including a post office and a school facility.

This meant that there was a need for workers in these social establishments as there was business spread across the week, rather than having one or two days where there was a mass appeal for goods and services.

Temperance was encouraged through the use of preachers from England speaking to the workers, and the establishment of the Portlaw tontine club in 1838, which punished its members financially if the rules of the society were broken.

[citation needed] The cotton industry was central to the local economy and lasted half a decade when it became bankrupt in 1876.

[5] In 2021, the original home of the Malcomson family, Mayfield House (now derelict and uninhabitable), was put on the market for just under €800,000.