Sandymount (
Dumhach Thrá in
IrishIrish is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now only spoken natively by a small minority of the Irish population but also plays an important symbolic role in the life of the Irish state, and is used...
) is a coastal suburb in
Dublin 4Dublin 4 is a postal district of Dublin, Ireland including the suburbs of Sandymount, Ballsbridge, Donnybrook, Ringsend and Irishtown on the South side of Dublin....
on the Southside of Dublin in the Republic of
IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
. It is in the Dublin South East Dáil constituency and the East Pembroke Ward. It was once part of
Pembroke TownshipPembroke Township was an area adjoining the City of Dublin, Ireland formed for local government purposes by private Act of Parliament in 1863. The township took its name from the fact that most of the area was part of the estate of the Earl of Pembroke. The township was governed by commissioners...
, which took its name from the fact that this area was part of the estate of the
Earl of PembrokeThe Earldom of Pembroke, associated with Pembroke Castle in Wales, was created by King Stephen of England. Several times the line has become extinct, and the Earldom has been re-created, starting the count over again with a new first Earl...
.
Sandymount is located between 4 and 5 km south east of Dublin City, with a promenade along which the coast road runs from
Sandymount StrandSandymount Strand is a large strand on the east coast of Ireland, adjacent to the village and suburb of Sandymount in Dublin. The strand, which is part of the South Bull, is a major component of the south side of Dublin Bay.Sandymount Strand is a popular place for locals to take a walk...
down to
Merrion GatesThe area called Merrion Gates, in Dublin, is roughly where the northbound Dublin DART line goes inland before the station at Sydney Parade, which lies to the north. Booterstown DART station is the nearest to the south. The lands of the School for the Visually Impaired are here...
.
Sandymount (
Dumhach Thrá in
IrishIrish is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now only spoken natively by a small minority of the Irish population but also plays an important symbolic role in the life of the Irish state, and is used...
) is a coastal suburb in
Dublin 4Dublin 4 is a postal district of Dublin, Ireland including the suburbs of Sandymount, Ballsbridge, Donnybrook, Ringsend and Irishtown on the South side of Dublin....
on the Southside of Dublin in the Republic of
IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
. It is in the Dublin South East Dáil constituency and the East Pembroke Ward. It was once part of
Pembroke TownshipPembroke Township was an area adjoining the City of Dublin, Ireland formed for local government purposes by private Act of Parliament in 1863. The township took its name from the fact that most of the area was part of the estate of the Earl of Pembroke. The township was governed by commissioners...
, which took its name from the fact that this area was part of the estate of the
Earl of PembrokeThe Earldom of Pembroke, associated with Pembroke Castle in Wales, was created by King Stephen of England. Several times the line has become extinct, and the Earldom has been re-created, starting the count over again with a new first Earl...
.
Location and access
Sandymount is located between 4 and 5 km south east of Dublin City, with a promenade along which the coast road runs from
Sandymount StrandSandymount Strand is a large strand on the east coast of Ireland, adjacent to the village and suburb of Sandymount in Dublin. The strand, which is part of the South Bull, is a major component of the south side of Dublin Bay.Sandymount Strand is a popular place for locals to take a walk...
down to
Merrion GatesThe area called Merrion Gates, in Dublin, is roughly where the northbound Dublin DART line goes inland before the station at Sydney Parade, which lies to the north. Booterstown DART station is the nearest to the south. The lands of the School for the Visually Impaired are here...
. It lies a little south of the Great South Wall in
Dublin BayDublin Bay is a delta shaped inlet of the Irish Sea off the east coast of Ireland.The bay is approximately 10 km in width at its north-south base and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin, stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south...
. Neighbouring suburbs are
BallsbridgeBallsbridge is a suburb of Dublin, Ireland, named for the bridge spanning the River Dodder on the south side of the city. The sign on the bridge still proclaims it as "Ball's Bridge" in recognition of the fact that the original bridge in this location was built and owned by a Mr...
, Merrion and
DonnybrookDonnybrook may refer to:* Donnybrook, Dublin, Ireland, site of the original Donnybrook Fair, which earned a reputation for drunkenness and disorder as a result, an old word meaning a fight or a brawl.*...
.
The area is served by the (
DARTThe Dublin Area Rapid Transit is part of the suburban railway network in Ireland, running mainly along the coastline of Dublin Bay on the Trans-Dublin route, from Greystones in County Wicklow, through Dublin to Howth and Malahide in County Dublin.Trains are powered via a 1500V DC overhead catenary...
) commuter rail system and two stops are located in the area,
SandymountSandymount railway station serves Sandymount and Ballsbridge in Dublin, Ireland.There is a level crossing as the railway line crosses Sandymount Avenue...
and
Sydney ParadeSydney Parade railway station is located at Sydney Parade Avenue in Sandymount, Dublin 4, Ireland.The station opened in January 1835 as a halt on the Dublin and Kingstown Railway. In 1852, it was upgraded to a full station leading to shelters, stone platforms, and a footbridge.The station was...
. It is served by Dublin Bus routes 2, 3 and 18. It was once served by route 52 which ceased operation in 1998. The
AircoachAircoach is a Republic of Ireland based subsidiary company of the United Kingdom based FirstGroup. It provides airport bus express coach services from Belfast, Cork, Greystones, Bray and Dublin to Dublin Airport. It also operates contracted bus service for airport car parks...
private coach service, running from
GreystonesGreystones is a coastal town in County Wicklow, Ireland. It is located on Ireland’s east coast, south of Bray and south of Dublin , with a population in the region of 15,000....
to
Dublin AirportDublin Airport , is operated by the Dublin Airport Authority. Located in Collinstown, in the Fingal part of County Dublin, it is by far the busiest airport in Ireland - over 23.5 million passengers passed through the airport in 2008.Passenger traffic at Dublin Airport is predominantly...
, has two stops in Sandymount.
Sandymount railway station on the electrified (
DARTThe Dublin Area Rapid Transit is part of the suburban railway network in Ireland, running mainly along the coastline of Dublin Bay on the Trans-Dublin route, from Greystones in County Wicklow, through Dublin to Howth and Malahide in County Dublin.Trains are powered via a 1500V DC overhead catenary...
) suburban
railwayRail transport is the conveyance of passengers and goods by means of wheeled vehicles running along railways or railroads. Rail transport is part of the logistics chain, which facilitates international trade and economic growth...
system was originally opened in January 1835.
Amenities
Sandymount is an affluent suburb with many large houses, mostly dating from the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Sandymount Green is a triangular park in the centre of Sandymount, located right next to the village. Some rather fine houses (part of the former Sandymount Castle) and some cafés and shops surround the green, and there is a bust of
William Butler YeatsWilliam Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and dramatist and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years Yeats served as an Irish Senator for two terms...
in the green.
The village has a small supermarket. Over recent decades, many family-run businesses have closed, including the small petrol station. However, the area still has a range of owner-run businesses, including a butcher, cobbler, barber,
chipperFish and chips is a popular take-away food which originated in the United Kingdom. It consists of deep-fried fish in batter or breadcrumbs with deep-fried chipped potatoes.Popular tradition associates the dish with the United Kingdom; and fish and chips remains very popular in the UK and in...
, art school, post office, art gallery, clothes and shoe shops, book shop and a number of pharmacies.
There are several restaurants in Sandymount, including
Itsa4,
Dunne & Crescenzi,
Mario's,
Browne's and
Café Java, and a number of pubs and café bars, such as
Mulligan's,
O'Reilly's and
Ryan's (Sandymount House).
The Strand
Sandymount StrandSandymount Strand is a large strand on the east coast of Ireland, adjacent to the village and suburb of Sandymount in Dublin. The strand, which is part of the South Bull, is a major component of the south side of Dublin Bay.Sandymount Strand is a popular place for locals to take a walk...
is situated adjacent to the village and suburb of Sandymount in
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
. The large strand, which is part of the South Bull, (a mirror to the North Bull sandbank, which grew into North Bull Island) is a major component of the south side of
Dublin BayDublin Bay is a delta shaped inlet of the Irish Sea off the east coast of Ireland.The bay is approximately 10 km in width at its north-south base and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin, stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south...
. The strand runs from this point to Merrion Gates.
Sandymount Strand is a popular place for locals to take a walk. It is not ideal for swimming as the gradual slope of the beach makes the water too shallow to allow swimming near the shoreline. People and cars have been occasionally trapped by the incoming
tideTides are the rises and falls of sea level caused by the combined effect of rotation of the Earth and the gravitation of the Moon and the Sun. The tides occur with a period of approximately 12 and a half hours and are influenced by the shape of the near-shore bottom.Most coastal areas experience...
. A large inlet of water that remains even at low tide is known locally as "Cockle Lake". Flying kites is also a popular amusement on the beach.
The baths
The
Merrion Promenade Pier and Baths Co. built Sandymount swimming baths in 1883. The baths measured approximately 40 by 40 metres, with a 75-metre pier added in 1884. The pier featured a bandstand half way along it and summer concerts were regularly held there for many years. By 1920, the pier had deteriorated so much that it had to be demolished. The concrete baths section, which resembles a small harbour, remains.
Sandymount Martello Tower
About half way along the strand is a
Martello towerMartello towers are small defensive forts built in several countries of the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the Napoleonic Wars onwards....
, part of a system of defences built to warn of an invasion by Napoleon. The Tower was a popular cafe back in the 1960s. An attempt to turn the tower into a restaurant led to the installation of a large window with roller blinds on the seaward side of the tower. The restaurant never opened, leaving the tower with the modified window.
Education
Scoil MhuireThe Sisters of Mercy, Scoil Mhuire, came to Longford from Mother House in Baggot Street, Dublin in April 1861. They first lived in Keon’s Terrace and taught young children in the ground floor room of the old St. Micheal’s Boys’ School. Older girls who wanted to continue their education did so in...
Girls' Primary School is on Gilford Road and Star of the Sea Boys' School is on Leahy's Terrace.
Marian CollegeMarian College is a Marist Catholic secondary school on Lansdowne Road in Ballsbridge, Dublin. The school motto is Optimum Optare - the pursuit of excellence. The school was founded in 1954 and has a student population of 413 boys and 12 girls. The main sports played are rugby, basketball and...
is located nearby, and the former
Sandymount High SchoolSandymount High School was a coeducational secondary school on Herbert Road, Sandymount, Dublin 4. Founded in 1947, it was initially controversial because, as a non-denominational school, it wasn't owned by a church but by the Cannon family, who also provided the two headmasters the school had:...
and Roslyn Park are within walking distance of the village.
Sport
There are many sports clubs in the vicinity of Sandymount. Rugby, tennis, cricket, soccer and hockey are popular in the area. A well known fitness company also has a gymnasium and sports ground in Sandymount.
Religion
The
Church of IrelandThe Church of Ireland is a Christian church, an autonomous province of the Episcopal/Anglican Communion, operating across the island of Ireland, and the largest non-Roman Catholic religious body on the island...
Church of
St John of the Evangelist is located at the top of
St John's Road East. The Catholic church in Sandymount is dedicated to
Our Lady Star of the Sea and is near the north end of Sandymount Road.
Christ Church, on Sandymount Green, is a united Methodist and Presbyterian church, which appoints a minister from either denomination alternately and Mount Tabor nursing home shares the grounds of the church.
The area is also home to a house of the Franciscan Missionary Sisters for Africa.
Literary references
Sandymount Strand is the most famous beach in Irish fiction,
James JoyceJames Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish expatriate author, playwright and poet of the 20th century. He is known for his landmark novel Ulysses and its controversial successor Finnegans Wake , as well as the short story collection Dubliners and the semi-autobiographical novel A Portrait of...
based two episodes of his epic novel
UlyssesUlysses is a novel by James Joyce, first serialized in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, then published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on February 2, 1922, in Paris...
here:
On the morning of
BloomsdayBloomsday is a commemoration observed annually on 16 June in Dublin and elsewhere to celebrate the life of Irish writer James Joyce and relive the events in his novel Ulysses, all of which took place on the same day in Dublin in 1904. The name derives from Leopold Bloom, the protagonist of Ulysses...
, in the Proteus episode,
Stephen DedalusStephen Dedalus is James Joyce's literary alter ego, as well as the protagonist and antihero of his first, semi-autobiographical novel of artistic existence A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and an important character in Joyce's monumental Ulysses...
wanders "into eternity" on the strand; later the same day,
Leopold BloomLeopold Bloom is the fictional protagonist and antihero of James Joyce's novel Ulysses, assuming the role of the 'Odysseus' character. Like the Greek hero in The Odyssey, he is absent at the beginning of the story, and does not feature until episode four of the novel...
sits on a rock and watches while young Gertie lifts her skirt as Bloom pleasures himself. It was this incident in the Nausicaa episode which led to the
banA ban is, generally, any decree that prohibits something.Bans are formed for the prohibition of activities within a certain political territory. Some see this as a negative act and others see it as maintaining the "status quo"...
ning of the book in the
USAThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for alleged
obscenityObscenity , is a term that is most often used in a legal context to describe expressions that offend the prevalent sexual morality of the time...
.
- Ulysses, James Joyce.
Education
Scoil MhuireThe Sisters of Mercy, Scoil Mhuire, came to Longford from Mother House in Baggot Street, Dublin in April 1861. They first lived in Keon’s Terrace and taught young children in the ground floor room of the old St. Micheal’s Boys’ School. Older girls who wanted to continue their education did so in...
Girls' Primary School is on Gilford Road and Star of the Sea Boys' School is on Leahy's Terrace.
Marian CollegeMarian College is a Marist Catholic secondary school on Lansdowne Road in Ballsbridge, Dublin. The school motto is Optimum Optare - the pursuit of excellence. The school was founded in 1954 and has a student population of 413 boys and 12 girls. The main sports played are rugby, basketball and...
is located nearby, and the former
Sandymount High SchoolSandymount High School was a coeducational secondary school on Herbert Road, Sandymount, Dublin 4. Founded in 1947, it was initially controversial because, as a non-denominational school, it wasn't owned by a church but by the Cannon family, who also provided the two headmasters the school had:...
and Roslyn Park are within walking distance of the village.
People
Born in Sandymount:
- John S. Beckett
John Stewart Beckett , was an Irish musician, composer and conductor; cousin of the famous writer and playwright Samuel Beckett.-Youth and education:...
, musician, composer and conductor
- Valentine Iremonger, poet and diplomat
- Annie P. Smithson, novelist
- W.B. Yeats, poet
Lived in Sandymount:
- Brinsley MacNamara
Brinsley MacNamara - born John Weldon - was a writer born near Delvin, County Westmeath, Ireland. He worked for the Abbey Theatre from 1909, and later as the registrar of the National Gallery of Ireland. McNamara is most famous for his first printed novel, Valley of the Squinting Windows...
, author, lived on Gilford Drive, Sandymount
See also
- List of towns and villages in Ireland
External links