MARROWBONE LANE AFTER AN INTENSE RAIN STORM 26 JUNE 2022
The lane is named after Marylebone in London; Pimlico is located right next to it, and other London-inspired street names are nearby, like Spitalfields. These were brought to Dublin by London wool-workers, who settled in the area after William III’s conquest of Ireland in 1690.
Marylebone, London, commonly pronounced like “Marrow-bone”, is named after the church of St Mary at the Bourne, later corrupted to “Mary le Bone”, Middle French for “Mary the Good.” The Irish street name reproduces this error, literally meaning “Lane of Mary the Good.” By 1743, the street name was corrupted to Marrowbone Lane.
Marrowbone Lane is notable for what the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage describes as an “elegant early social housing scheme”, designed by Dublin Corporation’s Housing Architect Herbert George Simms, and built in the late 1930s, with curved corners that respond to the curve of Marrowbone Lane. “It is an excellent example of early modernist architecture which employed materials historically used in the area. H.G. Simms was housing architect to Dublin Corporation from 1932 until 1948. During his time in office, Simms was responsible for the design of some 17,000 new homes.”
The street is known for the fierce fighting that took place on it during the Easter Rising of 1916. The distillery on this street was used as a strongpoint by a force of more than a hundred rebels under the command of Éamonn Ceannt, which also held the nearby South Dublin Union.
Ceannt was executed by the British authorities after the rising’s failure. His second-in-command was Cathal Brugha, and other participants who achieved later prominence in one way or another were W. T. Cosgrave, Joseph McGrath and Denis O’Brien.
CHANCERY PLACE FEATURING CHANCERY HOUSE AND PARK [FEBRUARY 2022]
The Dublin Christian Mission is located at Chancery Place. it serves as a Christian community centre for a variety of different ministry opportunities. Some of the opportunities include youth clubs, community events, Cafe, small groups, transitional housing, short-term teams, food pantry and office space.
For me the most interesting thing about Chancery Place is the Chancery Place Flats [Chancery House] complex which was designed by Herbert G. Simms.
The Chancery Park flats have been described as, “a small carefully conceived building containing 27 flats with an adjoining enclosed garden which was completed in 1935.” A plaque on the gateway to the complex is dedicated to Herbert Simms who was appointed Housing Architect for the city of Dublin in 1932. Herbert George Simms, died September 28 1948.
Until 1932 new housing in Dublin had been the responsibility of the city architect, Horace O’Rourke. Between 1923 and 1931 new dwellings were being erected at an average rate of 555 per annum, but the shortage of adequate housing in the city remained acute. In 1932 or 1933 a separate housing architect’s Department was formed with specific responsibility for the design and erection of new dwellings, as distinct from their administration and maintenance. Simms was appointed to the new post of Corporation housing architect. He immediately recruited a temporary staff to assist him in the task which confronted him. In 1935 alone 1,552 dwellings were completed. During the sixteen years he was in office, Simms was responsible for the design and erection of some 17,000 new homes, ranging from striking blocks of flats in the central city [influenced by new apartment blocks by de Klerk in Amsterdam and J.P. Oud in Rotterdam] to extensive suburban housing schemes such as those at Crumlin and Cabra.
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