George Dacre Blacker (1791–1871) was a

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...

clergyman and

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

Biography

Blacker was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

in 1791, as the elder son of James Blacker,

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

of Dublin and

armiger In heraldry, an armiger is a person entitled to use a heraldic achievement (e.g., bear arms, an "armour-bearer") either by hereditary right, grant, matriculation, or assumption of arms. Such a person is said to be armigerous. A family or a cl ...

(i.e. a person entitled to use a

heraldic achievement In heraldry, an achievement, armorial achievement or heraldic achievement (historical: hatchment) is a full display or depiction of all the heraldic components to which the bearer of a coat of arms is entitled. An achievement comprises not only ...

). He entered

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

on 5 October 1806, aged sixteen. In 1809, he was elected a scholar of the college, proceeding to a BA in 1811 and an MA in 1858. For several years, he was curate of St Andrew's Church, Dublin, chaplain of the

Dublin Corporation Dublin Corporation (), known by generations of Dubliners simply as ''The Corpo'', is the former name of the city government and its administrative organisation in Dublin since the 1100s. Significantly re-structured in 1660-1661, even more sign ...

, and

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

Taghadoe Taghadoe in County Kildare in Ireland is the site of an ancient monastic settlement and Irish round tower, round tower. The site includes a graveyard and the ruins of a 19th-century church. It is situated 5 km from Maynooth, off the Straffan ...

. In 1840, he became

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...

in St Patrick's Cathedral and the vicar of

Maynooth Maynooth (; ga, Maigh Nuad) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick's ...

. Blacker wrote three works on local history, all printed for private circulation: ''Castle of Maynooth'' (1853; 2nd ed., 1860), ''Castle of Kilkea'' (1860), and ''A Record of Maynooth Church'' (1867). He also wrote ''Types and Prophecies Relating to Messiah'' (1829). Blacker died on 23 May 1871 at his home (in The Glebe, Maynooth), unmarried. He was buried four days later in the

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

mausoleum, at the expense of the local parish. He left less than £3000 in his will.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blacker, George 1791 births 1871 deaths 19th-century antiquarians Alumni of Trinity College Dublin 19th-century Irish Anglican priests Christian clergy from Dublin (city) Irish antiquarians