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About
Malahide This
Guide to Historical Malahide is based on the booklet of the same
name writen by the late Tom O'Shea with pen and ink illustrations
by his son Kerry.
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Malahide
Historical Society |
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Part
I |
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21.
St. Sylvester,s Well |
26.
Norse Longport |
31.
La Mancha |
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1.
The Velvet Strand
Approaching Malahide on the Coast Road from Portmarnock, one passes the well-known
Velvet Strand. It was from here, on June 24th. 1930 that the Southern Cross,
piloted by Sir Charles Kingsford Smith with Irishman, Captain Paddy Saul as
navigator, flew to Newfoundland on what was the second ever airplane flight
across the Atlantic from East to West. On August 18th. 1932, Jim Mollison,
husband of an equally famous woman pilot, Amy Johnson, also left the Velvet
Strand in his De Havilland Puss Moth aircraft, The Heart's Content, to attempt
the first solo, non-stop East to West crossing of the Atlantic. His aim was
to get to New York and his fuel capacity of 160 gallons ensured him of 33 hours
continuous flying. However, heavy headwinds forced him to land 30 hours later
at Pennfield Ridge, about 30 miles from Saint John, New Brunswick in Canada. He slept in the
Admiral Beatty Hotel in Saint John and, the next day, returned to
Pennfield to fly his Puss Moth out to the newly constructed
Millidgeville airfield (1930) where he refuelled and took off again for
New York on August 20th. This flight was acclaimed throughout the World and what cynics
had viewed as a foolish venture had, in fact, become a reality.
2.
Lambay Island
Seawards from the Velvet Strand can be seen the snail-like shape of Lambay
Island. A volcanic island of great antiquity, it was first mapped by Ptolemy
in 150 A.D. and was then known as Limnos. It comprises 1371 acres, of which
617 is farming land. In the year 530 A.D. Columcille built a monastery here.
In 790 it was occupied by the Vikings. From the 7th. to the 14th Century the
Church owned Lambay. For over a century it was a smugglers paradise and the
wreckers, with their bobbing lights, lured many an unsuspecting sailing vessel
onto the island's treacherous rocks.
In 1610, the Usher family owned Lambay and Primate Usher, Trinity College’s
first student lived there for some time. In 1691, it was a prison camp for
over 1000 soldiers, many of whom died there from wounds and starvation. 1841
saw the Malahide Talbots take over and it was during their residency that
the islanders were deported to turn the island into a hunters delight. Count
James Considine was in possession of Lambay in 1881 and the Baring Family
took over in 1904.
The Barings were the only British Banking firm to bank inside the Eastern
Bloc and when Cecil Baring bought the Island in 1904 for £9000 he brought
with him Sir Edwin Lutygens to re-build the existing castle on the island.
Cecil's wife's father was Pierre Lorrilard, the first American to win the
Derby. Rupert Baring, Lord Revelstoke, took over in 1934 and was resident
until his death in the mid 1990’s. The Island is noted for its deer,
seals and as a bird sanctuary for Kittiwakes, Guillemots, Razorbills, Cormorants,
Shags and Puffins. Lambay had a population of 115 in 1841 but to-day there
are only a handful of residents.
3.
Robswalls Castle
Heading west towards Malahide Village we pass Robswalls Castle on our left.
This tower house was once occupied by the Cistercian Monks of St. Mary's Abbey,Dublin
and all fishing boats entering the harbour of Malahide gave a donation of
fish to the monks. 
They
also benefited from ship-wrecks.When the monasteries were suppressed by Henry
VIII, he granted Robswalls to his Solicitor-General for Ireland, Patrick Barnewell
C.1540. At one time it had it's own small harbour hewn out of the rocks underneath
and had a three-storied circular staircase. It is minus a storey to-day.In
1825, it was described as a small and gloomy castle. Robswalls was farmed
by the Talbots of Malahide Castle until the 1980's and was a paying venture under
the direction of Mr. Sibbald, who used the Castle as a steward's house. It
also acted as a light-house service when, at dusk, a fire was lit on top to
guide fishermen home. Robswalls Castle has no history as such, no battles,
no sieges, yet it still stands to-day as a romantic-looking entity overlooking
the marine entrance to Malahide.
4.
Paddy's Hill
Inland from Robswalls rises Paddy's Hill, 124 feet above the Estuary. Here
C. 6000 B.C. lived Malahide's first hunter-gatherers. It is irreverently called
Paddy's Hill because local tradition has it that St. Patrick visited here.
An archaeological dig took place here in 1983 which proved that it was an
early habitation site. From uncovered refuse pits or kitchen middens it was
found that the earliest Malahidians ate very well, with duck and oysters regularly
on the menu. The top of the hill provides a panoramic view of Howth, Ireland's
Eye, the plains of Fingal, the Dublin Mountains and, on a fine day, the serrated
outline of the Carlingford and Mourne Mountains.
Proceeding along the Coast Road, which, incidentally, was built in 1936 with
stones from nearby Feltrim Quarry, it must be remembered that prior to 1936,
only a rough track existed here. Cars were not allowed except for the local
doctor and clergyman in times of an emergency.
5.
Hick’s Tower
In a short time we come to Hick’s Tower, which is a converted Martello
Tower. One of 74 such towers built in Ireland between 1804 and 1815, Malahide’s
tower was built in 1805 by the British Government in fear of a Napoleonic
landing in Ireland. The French called these towers bulldogs and it has been
said that they were built to puzzle posterity and resemble a child’s
sandcastle, left high and dry. On hearing of the proposed Napoleonic invasion
a Malahide wit is said to have commented:- “it could not be told where
the French would land, but likely it would be by the sea”. 
The
walls of Hick’s Tower are 6ft. thick and the ground floor stored 30 barrels
of gunpowder, cannon balls and water tanks with a capacity of 465 gallons.
The first floor housed the living and sleeping quarters for the soldiers while
the top floor, with a parapet, held a 24 pounder cannon. The tower was built
to be bomb-proof and the original entrance was 10 feet from the ground. The
swivel gun on the parapet had a range of approximately one mile. No nails,
only wooden pegs were used in it’s construction, in case a spark from
a soldier’s boot would blow the tower asunder. The mortar, holding the
granite blocks together, is exceptionally strong, as it is comprised of lime,
ash, hot wax and ox-blood.
Architect, Frederick Hicks took over the tower in 1910 and, with colossal
labour, cut windows in the wall and added a roof. To-day, at the apex of the
tower stands a witch on a broom. This, unfortunately, has replaced a beautiful
bronze sailing galleon which once adorned the roof. Hick’s Tower never
fired a shot, but to-day we can view it as Malahide’s Napoleonic heritage.
6.
Muldowney House
Drawing nearer to the Village, on the old coast road, stands Muldowney House,
once the home of Malahide’s landscape painter, Nathaniel Hone. He lived
here from 1872 onwards. In that year he married Magdalen Jameson of the Jameson
distilling family. He became a member of the R.H.A. in 1880 and accepted an
R.H.A. professorship in 1894. While at Muldowney House, Hone spent his time
painting, sketching, sailing, yacht racing and golfing. The changing light
and seascapes of Malahide attracted him. He had a studio and gallery at Muldowney
and painted one of his best known paintings, “Malahide Sands” from
his studio window, which overlooks the beach to-day. A fire was kept going
all the year round to keep the correct temperature for his paintings. He was
also Malahide’s first golfer and founded Malahide Golf Club in 1892.
When Nathaniel died in 1917, his wife bequeathed the greatest part of his
collection to the National Gallery.
7.
Malahide Golf
Though hard to imagine to-day, across the road from Muldowney where the public
space and car park is now, golf was once played. In 1892 a nine hole golf
course was laid out in Malahide, with 6 holes on the sea-side of the road
and 3 holes inland. Painter, Nathaniel Hone was the first Captain while Baron
Talbot de Malahide was the club’s first President. When the 6 holes on
the sea-shore dunes became endangered by erosion, they had to be moved across
the road to form a 9 hole inland course. Many of the shore club golfers then
became members of the Island Golf Club directly across the estuary which they
accessed by ferry boat from the Malahide slip. Malahide Golf Club re-located
to a newly constructed parkland course at Beechwood in the early nineteen
nineties.
8. The Island
Just across the estuary is the Island, which, in reality, is a peninsula.
Famed for its links golf course, which was founded in 1890, the first club
house was built by Dublin professional men and became known as the “bachelor”
club. Many famous golf games took place on the Island. One particular hole
called the Cricket Field recalls the story of W.G.Grace, the well known cricketer
who was bowled for a duck, first ball, in a challenge cricket match which
took place on the golf course. Another oft-quoted golf match took place on
the Island between Brian Inglis, the novelist, and Francis Cobbe of Newbridge
House. This was a 54 hole match, spread over three adjoining courses, Donabate,
Corballis and ending on the Island. Part and parcel of the game was that the
winner of a hole had to drink a bottle of beer before teeing off at the next
hole. In addition to the two caddies carrying the clubs, two more caddies
were required for the beer. The game ended all square and nobody seems to
know for sure who won the 95th. Hole !
As regards golf, the uniqueness of the Island stemmed from it’s ferry
service, which, unfortunately, now has disappeared. Over the years, thousands
of sailor-golfers were ferried across from the slip-way in Malahide and what
was once a 500 yard boat trip has now become a 7 mile car journey. Since the
club boat became redundant, the Island has lost some of its mystique.
The Island is also noted for its flowers. Eyebright abounds and this was once
used to cure weak eyes. There is also a plant known as Mountain Everlasting,
and this bears a resemblance to the Swiss Edelweiss. If one looks hard enough,
Lady’s Bed Straw can also be found and this was used to fill ladies mattresses,
because of its sweet and lasting fragrance.
9.
Malahide Sea Baths
We have reached the Village at last and turning left we take the old
road at the back of the Grand Hotel. Here, at the corner, once stood the popular
Malahide Baths, now sadly demolished. The hot sea-baths, resembling Roman
Baths, were exceedingly popular in the 19th Century and in the latter half
of that Century tourists flocked to Malahide to bathe in the baths renowned
for their health-giving properties. The bath water was, of course, changed
at high-tide. The normal practice was for an individual to pass through a
series of compartments, each of a hotter temperature than the previous one.
The therapy concluded with a plunge in a cold sea-pool.
10.
The Grand Hotel
Close to the top of Bath Avenue stands the Grand Hotel. This mock-Palladian
building was built by James Fagan of Feltrim in 1835. It was formerly known
as the Pink Hotel and the Royal Hotel.
The coming of the railway in 1844 brought many visitors to Malahide and in
1898 the Great Northern Railway Co. (G.N.R.) issued combined weekly rail and
hotel tickets for 63/--. The railway brochure quoted the Grand Hotel as being
charmingly situated on the coast and surrounded by ten acres of ornamental
pleasure grounds, with hot and cold sea-water baths. In the ‘twenties
the hotel was owned by the McCavanna family who in turn owned a highly successful
race-horse, aptly named A-Jar. Prior to this, the hotel was owned by
a Dr.Colohan who had bought it in 1910 for £10,000 and sold it in 1918
for £17,000. He was the first man to bring a motor-car to Malahide and
was commemorated on an Irish postage stamp.
When owned by H. Belsen, who lived in Seapark House, pigs were kept to ensure
a supply of food for the guests. The 1914-’18 war destroyed the hotel’s
business and it failed as a going concern for some years. When at home in
Malahide Lord Talbot used the hotel for many of his visits and the Talbot
flag flying from the roof of the hotel gave the wrong impression to many people
that the hotel was a Talbot dower house. The Grand was re-constructed in 1955,
modernised and officially re-opened by Attorney General Mr. P.McGilligan,
T.D. A new conference centre was opened in 1984, followed by several bedroom
extensions and a leisure centre and the once local hotel now displays an international
dimension.
11.
Seapark House
Standing at the main entrance gates of the Grand Hotel, Grove Road ascends
on your left. This road was laid to service Seapark House, which once stood
at the top of the road on the left hand side. It was built by Nicholas Morres
of Knockagh Castle, Co.Tipperary, when he married Susanna. eldest daughter
of Richard Talbot of Malahide Castle. When it was known as Killeen House,
Charles Stewart Parnell visited it on many occasions.
At the turn of the Century it was owned by a Dr. Coleman, who used it as a
rest home for patients with nervous disorders. The last owner was a Mr.Bretland
who erected a miniature railway in the grounds to carry vegetables from their
growing area to a storage depot near the kitchen. Seapark House was demolished
in 1983.
Across the main road from the Grand Hotel is an area once known as Barrage
Hill or Fort Hill. Cannon were mounted here as recently as forty years ago.
This area adjoins the Band Gardens or Pleasure Gardens which comprised serpentine
wooded walks and bowers in the area from James’s Terrace up to and around
the Grand Hotel. Military and police bands played here and ‘pyrotechnic
displays’ were held on special social occasions such as Malahide regatta
during the latter half of the 19th Century. Croquet was also played here.
Straight in front lies the Mall, originally a promenade leading to the hotel.
It was at one time called High Street to differentiate itself from Main Street.
At the end of the Mall, on your right stands James’s Terrace, called
after King James. This regency-styled terrace was also built by James Fagan
and lies parallel with the Grand Hotel. In the ‘fifties, it housed many
a retired colonel and colonial civil servant. The last house at the sea-end
was traditionally rented by the Officer-in-Charge of the Coast-Guard Station.
12.
Carnegie Library
We are now in the Village proper and on the left stands the Carnegie Library,
built in 1909 at a cost of £1000. Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish multi--millionaire,
who had made his millions in America in oil and steel, donated huge amounts
of money for the building and stocking of libraries.
The Malahide Carnegie Library was designed by Anthony Scott, who was born
in Galway in 1845, and the library is made of Portmarnock brick. When the
library was opened in May 1911, 500 books were presented to it by M.P.F. Collier
of New York. The first librarian was Mr. Cleary. In the past, dances, dramas
and concerts were held upstairs. It was re-constructed in 1975 and taken over
by Dublin Co. Council in 1976.
Across the Main Street from the Library is Townyard Lane. Here once stood
the townyard of the Malahide Estate. It was the changing stage for stage coaches
and horses were stabled and rested here. In latter days, a cinema, pub and
dance-hall occupied space here. The remains of the townyard wall may still
be seen to-day, at the rear of the supermarket.
The focal point of Malahide, The Diamond, has now been reached and from it
radiate roads in all directions. A sprinkling fountain had to be removed from
The Diamond C.1870 to make way for stage-coaches on their way to the Grand
Hotel. Here, too, once stood the Royal Irish Constabulary (R.I.C.) Barracks,
burnt down in the nineteen twenties.
13.
St. Andrew’s Church
Turning left at The Diamond, we proceed up Church Road, past Windsor and Carlisle
Terraces, to St. Andrews Church. Built in 1832 at a cost of £1,300,
it was enlarged in1870. Once noted for its beautiful gardens, the then Rector,
Archdeacon Lindsay published a well-known gardening book entitled Shrubs,
in 1933.
Many a Malahide garden blossomed because of his enthusiasm and experience.
Another well-known Rector was Robert Walsh, the historian, who published “Fingall
and its Churches” in 1888. The church contains some fine stain-glass
windows, depicting biblical scenes.
Under the gravel path in front of the church lie buried two unknown victims
of the tragic Tayleur, which sunk off Lambay Island in 1894. Being of unknown
faith, no church would claim them, so to-day, their remains lie, unmarked,
under the carriageway of St.Andrew’s Church. In the graveyard, behind
the church, tombstones recall some of Malahide’s best-known residents
over the years. Beside the many Talbots who lie buried here, there are also
memorials to the painter, Nathaniel Hone, the historian, Edmund Curtis, the
architect, Frederick Hicks and the artist, Flora Mitchell.
Across the road from St.Andrew’s stands 'Ormiston', the house where,
at one time, Malahide children attended Miss Ahern’s private co-ed Junior
School. Just a few down down the road is St. Andrew's National School. Founded
in 1823 on land provided by Lord Talbot, the school was then funded by donations
and an annual guest sermon preached in St. Andrew’s Church. Though now
much enlarged the original school building has survived and functions as a
hall with the interesting roof timbers featured.
14.
Wheatfield
Continuing up the hill, past Roseneath on the corner, which, incidentally,
was the first house in Malahide to have electricity, we pass The Bawn on the
right, which , originally, was an enclosure for cattle. In a short space,
Wheatfield is reached. Here can be seen the Norman trademark in the remains
of a ‘motte and bailey’ castle. This stronghold, commanding the
local countryside, was possibly the first Talbot settlement in Malahide. A
‘motte and bailey’ usually was comprised of a stockaded wooden castle
or keep on top of a mound, surrounded by a moat over which a bailey bridge
entered a court yard where stables, lodgings, barns and workshops were housed.
The Wheatfield ‘motte and bailey’ is in a good state of preservation,
but the name Wheatfield brings back other memories too. From here came Caughoo,
the horse that won the Grand National in 1947 at the fine price of 100/1.
Owned by the McDowell family, Caughoo’s groom was Ted Wright. It’s
jockey was 35 year old Eddie Dempsey who had never been in England before
the race. In 1947, rumours abounded that because of a very heavy mist, Caughoo
did only one circuit of the course. Bought for £50., he proved an easy
20 length winner on the day. The stuffed head of Caughoo is preserved in Drogheda
to-day and his last owner used to prop the head up on a chair each Grand National
day so that Caughoo could relive the thrills and spills of the National once
more.
15.
Ring-Forts
Close by the railway line, south of Malahide Village in the Grange area are
situated Malahide’s ring-forts. To here the last Danish King of Dublin
retreated when attacked by the Normans in 1170. His settlement must have been
quite extensive as crop-marks outlining two large ring-forts can be clearly
seen in aerial photographs. The last Danish King was Hamund MacTurkill.
16.
The Railway
Across the road from Wheatfield runs the railway line from Dublin. Next to
the 12th. Century arrival of the Talbots into Malahide, the arrival of the
railway in 1844 was probably Malahide’s second greatest turning point
in it’s history. There were two proposed routes for a railway north from
Dublin, a coastal route and an inland route through Navan to Armagh. Thankfully
for Malahide, the coastal route won out and as a result of the railway passing
through some excellent local town planning resulted. The Malahide railway
took nine years to build and on the Dublin side of the Station it took 90
tons of gunpowder to blast through the rocks.
An eleven span wooden viaduct carried the rails over the estuary to the north
of the station. In the month of September 1841, Dr. John Lloyd of Malahide
Dispensary treated 103 cases of injury among construction workers, 8 lives
having already been lost. Labourers were paid 8 pence a month. 10 shillings
were received for injuries incurred while £5 was granted for death resulting
from injuries.
The railway line cost almost £22,000 per mile to build as far as Drogheda under the direction of the Engineer-in-Chief, Sir John
Macneill, first professor of engineering at Trinity College, Dublin. In December, 1843 Macneill said there were seven to eight thousand men employed on the works. Settlement was made every month with the contractors and and any additional or unexpected work was estimated and contracted for. The first contract was awarded to Jeffs in October 1840 and subsequent contracts to William Dargan, the great railway contractor and promoter of the Dublin Great Exhibition of 1853. On the 17th. March 1844 the Norah Creina,
pulling 7 coaches and carrying 565 passengers including the Lord Lieutenant,
Earl de Grey, traveled the 30 miles from Dublin to Drogheda in 1 hour and 12 minutes. It stopped at
Malahide to allow the Talbot family to embark and the Coastguard fired a salute
as it passed. Daniel O'Connell had been very helpful in getting the necessary Act of Parliament. On the 23 May O'Connell and several hundred friends made the return trip to Drogheda followed that evening by a big party in Edenmore, the home of one of the directors.
During the Famine, many starving Northerners reached Malahide by walking the
railway tracks. In 1864, a late train to Malahide was provided when local
businessmen undertook to subsidise the venture for £150. At the turn
of the century daily sea-side excursions from Dublin were organised, with
children free. Cheap Sunday fares were also introduced. In 1903, Malahide
Station was designed by a Mr. Mills. It is one of the few stations in rural
Ireland to provide a canopy for shelter. In the last few years the station
has been used as a setting for television commercials. The line from Dublin
to Malahide was electrified in 1999 and a frequent suburban DART service commenced
in 2000.
17.
Malahide Castle
In the centre of Malahide Demesne stands the area’s most imposing building,
Malahide Castle, home of the Talbot family for some 800 years. It is our best
example of Malahide’s physical heritage. The Castle was founded by an
Anglo-Norman, Sir Richard de Talbot who came to Ireland in 1185. The Castle
started as a 3 storey tower house and around this core various extensions
were added over the centuries. It was, at one time, a walled and moated castle
and to-day, the grassy mounds to the left of the main door indicate where
once the waters of the moat ran. The Castle incorporates architectural and
decorative styles of many centuries.
Here in this Castle, the Boswell Papers were discovered, the largest and most
important find of English literary manuscripts ever made. Some very fine rooms
enhance the interior: the Great Hall is a medieval room C.1487 and is overlooked
by a minstrel’s gallery; the Oak Room is a 16th.Century richly-carved
oak-panelled room; the Library dates to the mid 16th. Century and the Drawing
Rooms were constructed between 1765 and 1782. To-day, the Castle, which is
open to the public, displays a fine selection of Irish antique furniture as
well as housing the National Portrait Collection. The Fry Model Railway nearby
is a very extensive working lay-out depicting Irish rail transport up to the
present.
In 1976, Dublin County Council acquired Malahide Castle and Demesne of 268
acres for £650,000. There are many items of interest in the Demesne.
The Gardens, comprising 20 acres, were created between 1948 and 1973. In them
are over 5,000 varieties of plants from both the Northern and Southern hemispheres.
In the Castle grounds also are to be seen: a lodge known as Malahide Gate,
which was designed by A. Souther Forrest in 1886; an old limekiln; an ice-house;
a covered well known as Yourell’s Well, which produces crystal clear
water, and anchor rings, still in the ground, which were used to tether Blimps
or airships used for patrolling the Channel on the look-out for submarines
during the 1914-’18 War. The Blimps were 143 feet long, 32 feet wide
and had a cruising speed of 35 mph
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