Irish History

This October We Remember Seán Moore (1913-1986)

This October We Remember Seán Moore (1913-1986)

Seán Moore will always be synonymous with Ringsend. He is remembered by the prestigious Seán Moore Awards as well as Seán Moore Road and Park. Seán was born in 1913 and grew up in Irishtown and was educated locally at the Vocational School in Ringsend. When he finished his tuition he joined the Gas Company

Read more

Looking for a different experience this Halloween? Why not visit the O’Connell Tower

Looking for a different experience this Halloween? Why not visit the O’Connell Tower

The ancient custom of Halloween dates back over 2,000 years to the festival of Samhain. It was held that on Halloween night the souls of the dead returned to their homes. People, in an effort to ward off evil spirits, adorned costumes and lit bonfires, out of which the popular images of demons, witches and ghosts,

Read more

Maureen O’Hara Remembered

Maureen O’Hara Remembered

Leafy Beechwood Avenue in Ranelagh is about to be added to the destination for Irish Americans, tourists, and film buffs alike, following the erection of a commemorative plaque in September to honour Maureen FitzSimons, better known as Maureen O’Hara, at no. 32 Beechwood Avenue Upper,

Read more

“I am Dracula … And I bid you welcome”

“I am Dracula ... And I bid you welcome”

We all know who Count Dracula is, we’ve seen the movies, put the fangs in at Halloween, maybe even read the book, but did you know that the Irish author Bram Stoker was a regular around Ringsend back in the 1800’s? Nope? Me neither! Local historian Eddie Bohan,

Read more

Plaque Unveiled: The “Patriotic Children’s Treat”

Plaque Unveiled: The “Patriotic Children’s Treat”

On 29th June 2024 Dublin City Council hosted a ‘Picnic in the Park’ to mark the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate the Patriotic Children’s Treat, which took place in Clonturk Park on 1st July 1900. Present at the unveiling were such distinguished guests as Deputy Lord Mayor Donna Cooney and Mary McAulliffe

Read more

Point Pedestrian & Cycle Bridge

Point Pedestrian & Cycle Bridge

The East Link Bridge replaced the numerous ferries that carried traffic across the river. The bridge which is a bascule bridge or a moveable bridge (particularly common in Belgium) was opened to road traffic in 1984. RTÉ noted that, “in its first 12 hours of operation over six thousand vehicles used the bridge”

Read more

The Vexed Problem of Public Toilets

The Vexed Problem of Public Toilets

When nature calls we all share a common objective – to get rid of waste substances from the body. While we may not use this particular phrase, nevertheless, access to a toilet is a basic need, especially in a city with an expanding population. When this service is diminished every citizen is affected,

Read more

Laurence Redmond: A Ringsend Hero in need of commemoration

Laurence Redmond: A Ringsend Hero in need of commemoration

I recently passed a handsome brass plaque at No.163 Pearse Street, erected in 2008 to honour the firemen who died in a fire on the premises in 1936. The most distinctive plaques in the city (generally blue in colour) belong to the Dublin City Commemorative Plaque Scheme, though one might have noticed

Read more

James Plunkett Honoured in Rathmines

James Plunkett Honoured in Rathmines

Many people will look fondly at the works of James Plunkett (born James Kelly) and especially his 1969 classic novel Strumpet City, a story set during the lock-out (between 1913 -14). It is on par with James Joyce’s Dubliners or Brendan Behan’s play The Quare Fellow as one of the greatest gifts this city offers

Read more

Ringsend International Airport 

Ringsend International Airport 

While it may seem strange to the readers to think of an aerodrome at Ringsend, the concept is not a particularly new one. Indeed, it had been floated as far back as 1930 and was taken even further in 1935 when a proposal by Desmond McAteer was published in Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review. McAteer envisioned the reclamation

Read more