Drumcondra
Drumcondra (Irish: Droim Conrach, meaning the Ridge of the Condraighe, who were a tribe from the 2nd century) is a residential area and inner suburb on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It was the central area of the district of Clonturk, and the two names were used equally for, for example, the religious and civil parishes.
The poplation of Drumcondra in 2002 was 8,738. The River Tolka and the Royal Canal flow through the area. The new Dublin Metro North system is proposed to pass through Drumcondra.
The area is the site of the palace of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin (Architect: William Hague) and three colleges are located here: All Hallows College, Mater Dei Institute of Education and St Patrick’s College of Education. All three of these colleges are associated with the Irish Roman Catholic Church and Dublin City University.
History
.
The Cat and Cage Pub on the Drumcondra Road was the site of an old postal stop and the point at which rebels, during the 1798 rebellion, seized a postal cart in order to signal to others in north Co. Dublin to revolt. Incidentally, the Cat and Cage is located at the corner of Church Avenue, the location of Bertie Ahern’s family home (see below).
The Architect James Gandon is buried in the graveyard of the Church of Ireland, Drumcondra.
People
Drumcondra is today famous as the birthplace and residence of former Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Bertie Ahern, TD. The residence of the Archbishop of Dublin is also in Drumcondra. Aidan Gillen, star of “Queer as Folk” and “The Wire”, is also from Drumcondra. Other well known residents include Irish Times opinion writer Fintan O’Toole; former Ireland national soccer team manager Eoin Hand; and novelist Dermot Bolger.
Sport
One of the main sights of Dublin is Croke Park, where Ireland’s national games of Gaelic football and hurling are often to be seen. One of the largest sports stadiums in Europe, ‘Croker’ is the headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association and also houses the official GAA Museum. The finals of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship and All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship are played in the stadium almost every year.
Drumcondra is also the location of the Tolka Park soccer stadium, the home of Shelbourne F.C. Drumcondra F.C. (Drums) were a League of Ireland club from 1928-1972 whose home ground was Tolka Park who lost their league status and merged with Home Farm F.C.
.
Transport
- The district is served by Drumcondra railway station, on the main Drumcondra road. The station initially opened on 1 April 1901 but closed on 1 December 1910 with the termination of Kingsbridge (now Heuston Station) to Amiens Street (now Connolly Station) services. Part of the original building was demolished in late 1918. It reopened on 2 March 1998 as a station on the Maynooth / Longford commuter line.
- Griffith Avenue, which runs through Glasnevin, Drumcondra and Marino, is the longest tree lined Avenue in the Northern Hemisphere with no retail outlets. The Avenue spans 3 electoral constituencies.
June 25th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
[...] Joyce set several of the Dubliners stories on the Northside, reflecting his childhood sojourns in Drumcondra and Fairview. Other best selling authors who have written extensively about the Northside include [...]