Dartry
Dartry (Irish: Dartraí) is a suburb of Dublin. Among the locations in Dartry are Dartry Road, Temple Road, Orwell Park, and Palmerston Park.
Dartry Road
In the part of Dartry Road between Palmerston Park and Temple Road is located Trinity Hall, the most prominent student residence for students of the Trinity College Dublin (see ). The side gate opening on Dartry Road is the main pedestrian entrance to the Trinity Hall grounds.
Also on the Trinity College grounds at Dartry is the new (since 1967) home of the centuries-old Trinity College Botanic Garden.
Part of Dartry Road is the boundary between the Dublin South–East and Dublin South constituencies.[1] This is also the city / county boundary and is physically marked by the River Dodder. The Dropping Well pub at the riverside is built on the site of a mortuary established to deal with dead bodies carried down the river to the pool underneath the nearby waterfall. It was later a well known destination for "bona fide" travellers who had to have gone more than 3 miles to be served a drink during the holy hour when Dublin pubs used to shut between 2.30 and 3.30 in the afternoon.
Dartry Road is known as the scene of the still-controversial killing of IRA member Timothy Coughlin by police informer Sean Harling on the evening of 28 January 1928. It happened opposite 'Woodpark Lodge', where Harling lived at the time.[2]
Dartry House
Dartry House is an imposing two-storey mansion built about 1840 with several additions made later such as a turret which was incorporated in the building about 1900.
Its original owner was Obadiah Williams, a wealthy merchant of Huguenot origin. Among later owners was William Martin Murphy, who owned The Irish Independent, was involved with the Dublin United Tramways Company (DUTC) and was a central figure in the dispute known as the "Dublin Lockout" of 1913 where the union side was led by Jim Larkin. The DUTC constructed the tram line from the centre of Dublin to Dartry and Dartry House was built at the original place where the line ended. The terminus of the line and the associated sheds now house an engineering firm.
Sport
The locale has acquired a reputation for sporting excellence, with two soccer clubs - the Senior Orwell Dartry and the Junior Dartry Celtic - Brookfield Tennis Club, and LA Fitness Gym.
Amenities
Dartry has a multitude of facilities and amenities,which, aside from the sporting clubs mentioned above, include the terminal for the 140 bus (beside Palmerston Park) and a postbox on Saint Kevin's Park.
Geographical Confusion and Political Instability
Residents of Dartry have long been embroiled in the confusion over the boundaries of the area, as there exists a nebulous distinction between Dartry, Rathgar, Milltown, Cowper and Rathmines. The matter is made even more ambiguous by "Milltown" Luas stop, which is in fact located in Dartry, and which the residents of Dartry have been laying claim to for years, while the government remains steadfastly against the Dartrians. The political friction has come close to boiling over in recent times, most notably in July 2009 when a turf war nearly occurred between Dartry's "West-Side" Gang and Milltown's "Hill-Top" Gang.
Gangs
Dartry is an affluent area where gang violence is not a problem. Dartrians take pride in the fact that one gang - "West-Side"- encompasses the whole area, with no subdivisions. This unique unity was referenced in one of Brooklyn rapper Nas's songs - "West-side, East-side, unified there is no divide". However, despite the fact there is no friction within the area, Dartry has a frosty relation with the "East-Side" gang, the main Cowper gang. The geographical division occurs along the green luas line, with West-Side to the west of the line, and East-Side to the East. Dartry have also clashed with Rathmines, however enjoy a very amical relationship with Rathgar, the area further to the West again. In the past Dartry were known for being a small, yet fiercely passionate and dangerous gang, with certain members going on to reach nationwide notoriety, such as IRA member Timothy Coughlin (who was controversially killed on Dartry Road by police informer Sean Harling on the evening of 28 January 1928. Another famous member is Martin Cahill, nicknamed "The General", who was also killed nearby, on the junction of Oxford Street and Charleston Road, by a masked assassin on a motorbike. The event and life of Martin Cahill were charted in The General (1998 film), starring Brendan Gleeson and Jon Voight.
References
- ↑ Dáil Éireann Parliamentray Debates, Volume 108, 7 November 1947
- ↑ "Mysterious death of `20s Volunteer" By Aengus O Snodaigh, in An Phoblacht/Republican News, 29 January 1998 -