A detailed sketch by Thomas Dineley from 1681 reveals the inn’s impressive architecture; a substantial two-storey building spanning four bays, complete with dormer windows dotting the roof and a chimney stack rising from the southern gable. Dineley’s illustration wasn’t merely artistic documentation; he specifically labelled it ‘Lenthall’s, the chief inn’, suggesting this was the premier accommodation in Ennis at the time.

The inn’s proprietor, John Lenthall, appears in various historical records that paint a picture of a well-established businessman in the town’s social fabric. The Manor Court Rolls of 1674 identify him as an innkeeper, whilst a new charter for Ennis issued in 1687 lists a John Lenthall as a vintner, indicating he may have expanded his hospitality business to include wine trading, or perhaps passed the trade to a relative of the same name. His establishment was one of only four recorded inns operating in 17th-century Ennis, and remarkably, it’s the sole inn from that era whose exact location we know today.

The other three inns of the period have largely vanished from historical memory, with only one known to have been situated somewhere along what is now Parnell Street, though its precise location remains a mystery. Lenthall’s Inn’s prominent position at O’Connell Square and its designation as the ‘chief inn’ suggest it likely catered to merchants, officials, and other distinguished visitors passing through this important market town in County Clare.