Priorswood ()
is a
townland
A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...
and district in northern
Coolock
Coolock () is a large suburban area, centred on a village, on Dublin city's Northside in Ireland. Coolock is crossed by the Santry River, a prominent feature in the middle of the district, with a linear park and ponds. The Coolock suburban are ...
, on the
Northside
Northside or North Side may refer to:
Music
* Northside (band), a musical group from Manchester, England
* NorthSide, an American record label
* NorthSide Festival (Denmark), a music festival in Aarhus, Denmark
* "Norf Norf", a 2015 song by Vinc ...
of
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. It is in the jurisdiction of
Dublin City Council
Dublin City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Dublin in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the council was ...
and forms part of the
Dublin 17
Dublin postal districts have been used by Ireland's postal service, known as ''An Post'', to sort mail in Dublin. The system is similar to that used in cities in Europe and North America until they adopted national postal code systems in the 19 ...
postal district.
Etymology and history
Priorswood took its name from a large house, Friarswood, situated off Belcamp Lane, near the Malahide Road, or from the townland of the same name. The house was itself named for a historic priory, thought to be that of the knights based at Clontarf and Kilmainham.
Location and access
![Priorswood Rd, Coolock, Dublin - panoramio](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Priorswood_Rd%2C_Coolock%2C_Dublin_-_panoramio.jpg)
The area is located in the northern part of the civil parish of Coolock, on formerly rural land, and borders
Darndale to the east, Clonshaugh to the west and Coolock itself to the south. The modern-day estates that make up the area are found west of Darndale, north of the Greencastle Road, east of the Clonshaugh Industrial Estate and south of the R139; the part which lies north of the R139 has no or few residents. The Turnapin Stream, one of the two main tributaries which form the Mayne River, runs through the northern part of the area.
The core of the district is the
townland
A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...
of the same name in the
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
of Coolock.
Priorswood is accessible by taking the Priorswood Road off the Blunden Drive/Darndale Roundabout on the Malahide Road, and via the Clonshaugh Road from the N32, and is within 2.5 km of Dublin Airport. It is served by the
Dublin Bus
Dublin Bus ( ga, Bus Átha Cliath) is a State-owned bus operator providing services in Dublin. By far the largest bus operator in the city, it carried 138 million passengers in 2019. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann.
...
route number 27,27x,27c,27b on the Malahide Road.
Amenities
Priorswood largely comprises residential property, along with a parish church, and St Francis of Assisi Junior and Senior National Schools (on Clonshaugh Drive), and a special junior post-primary school for
Traveller children. Clonshaugh Shopping Centre is found next to the church and includes a dentist, protein store, newsagent, pub, pharmacy and other outlets. Belcamp Park (and Darndale Park) are located to the north. There is a
Gaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sports, amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include t ...
sports ground opposite the main Traveller settlement.
The socio-economic profile of the Priorswood area is similar to that of neighbouring Darndale, and the housing stock in the area is almost totally local authority housing, though of a different form to the bulk of Darndale. Although defined distinctly, Darndale and Priorswood are often mentioned together.
Developments
The Bewley's Airport Hotel was built in neighbouring Clonshaugh, just as the N32 branches towards the Baskin, and a Hilton Hotel and a number of retail and service outlets at the nearby ''Northern Cross'' development, on the lands of the former Belcamp College in
Balgriffin
Balgriffin ( ga, Baile Ghrífín, meaning "Griffin's town") is a suburb of Dublin, Ireland. It lies within southern Fingal in the traditional County Dublin and it is partly in the jurisdiction of Dublin City Council and partly that of Fingal C ...
.
Bewley's
Bewley's is an Irish hot beverage company, located in Dublin and founded in 1840, which operates internationally. Its primary business operations are the production of tea and coffee, and the operations of cafés. Bewley's has operations in Ire ...
have a tea and coffee packing plant west of the Northern Cross development and a number of companies are also based there.
Religion
![St](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/St._Francis_Church%2C_Priorswood%2C_Clonshaugh%2C_Co_Dublin._-_geograph.org.uk_-_627236.jpg)
Priorswood is a
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...
in the
Fingal South East deanery of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin
The Archdiocese of Dublin ( ga, Ard-Deoise Bhaile Átha Cliath) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in the eastern part of Ireland. Its archepiscopal ...
. It is served by the Church of St Francis of Assisi.
Representation
In
Dáil Éireann, Priorswood is in the constituency of
Dublin Bay North.
References and footnotes
{{coord, 53, 24, 21, N, 6, 11, 42, W, source:kolossus-ruwiki, display=title
Townlands of County Dublin