History
Before the Guinnesses
In 1747, John Vernon of Clontarf Castle leased 29 Irish acres of land at Blackbush to a Paul Hale and his brothers for 99 years, and in 1796, Margaret Holmes, only child of Paul Hale, assigned Blackbush to her son John Holmes. In 1814, 'Thornhill House' was built on the Blackbush lands by Sergeant John Ball. As of 1829, Hugh and Fleming O'Reilly were living in Thornhill.The Guinness era
1835, Arthur Lee Guinness and Benjamin Lee Guinness bought, for £500, the lease of Thornhill from the O'Reilly family and the trustees of the Holmes family, and negotiated a new lease with John Vernon; they immediately moved into Thornhill House.St. Annes by Joan Ussher Sharkey Further lands were purchased over time by the Guinness family to build up an extensive property. In 1837, Elizabeth and Benjamin Lee Guinness commissioned St Anne's House, a large Italianate-style residence known locally as "The Mansion", and it was modified over several generations. The Italianate influence included references in the garden follies to ancient Roman sites as well as the import of actual antiquities. The new estate was named after thePublic park, housing and school
In 1937, Bishop Plunket decided he could no longer maintain such a large estate and negotiations withFeatures
The park has a number of features. It is crossed by the small Naniken River, and a diversion from this, in turn, supplies the artificial Duck Pond. The Guinness family added a number of follies, a walled garden, and a grand avenue to the mansion house. Since the 1950s, extensive walks, a recognised Rose Garden and newer miniature rose garden, and Dublin's city arboretum, the Millennium Arboretum, which was formed with 1,000 varieties of tree, have been added. Within the last decade, Dublin City Council has been restoring parts of the Naniken River to its natural state, creating wildlife habitats and wildflower meadows, and improving the path system. They removed some 1970s interventions, including a secondary pond and some rockery walks, partly due to problems with maintenance and partly to open up a vista from James Larkin Road. The park management also increased car parking to alleviate traffic congestion in the surrounding neighbourhoods of the popular park.Follies and garden buildings
St. Anne's is known for its garden follies and features, of which there are approximately 10 surviving from around 12, mainly around the Naniken River. These are a holy well covering, three classical buildings, two decorative bridges, a rustic cave, a grotto where several paths meet, a shell house and a yew circle and pool, while lost features include a yew walk and nymphaeum, and a basalt "druidic circle". No details of what the latter consisted of survive, but there are substantial structures in basalt around one crossing of the Naniken. Along the Naniken and by the pond are:Hermitage bridge
The Hermitage Bridge, which crosses the Naniken several metres above, has a passage at river-bank level, and a "hermit's chamber".Herculanean house
A composite ''domus''-style house based on findings atRustic cave
As the Naniken approaches the Duck Pond, there is a "rustic cave" to one side.Viewing tower
The viewing tower, an unusual folly, is a Roman-style building designed by Sir Benjamin Guinness himself, based on the Roman Tomb of the Julii at St Remi in France, and stands on the hill overlooking the duck pond. This started out as an observation tower on the roof of the original house. Later, the tower was removed during the extensive refurbishment of St. Anne's house in about 1873 and placed in its current location. The viewing tower is a three-storey structure, with round-headed windows on the lower floor, which is 3.35m. square, segmental pediments over the first-floor windows, and eight Doric columns and arches on the top floor supporting the roof. The structure is 11m high.St Ann's Well
The Guinnesses built a stone hood over the well, a site of pilgrimage over centuries. It provided a flow of water to the pond, into the 20th century, but has been dry for many years.Temple of Isis
A water temple based on the Pompeian Water Temple ofAnnie Lee Guinness Bridge
This ornamental tower bridge, a sham ruin, was the first folly built at St Anne's. The asymmetrical castellated bridge was built over the entrance driveway from the coast road in 1839 to mark the birth of Annie Lee Guinness. It has the form of a tower and bridge near a horse chestnut walk. Queen Victoria passed under the bridge on her visit to the estate in 1900.Shell house
One of the oldest garden features, the shell house is formed of a mix of shells and Howth quartz.Yew circle
The remains of a yew circle and fountain pool are located behind the former formal walled garden beside the house's site.Rustic archways
Three rustic archways and a rockwork feature lie at the meeting of pathways coastwards from the former formal gardens.Restoration and conservation
Many of the follies had reached a neglected condition by the 2000s. For example, the Roman-style viewing tower was graffiti-covered, had been closed for many years and became completely hidden by mature trees (it could only be revealed, and the view restored, by felling trees, which would be detrimental to the environment of the park, so an alternative proposal was that the tower be moved instead to the site of the old rockery, near the junction of James Larkin Road and Mount Prospect Avenue). In 2010, Dublin City Council, with the support of the Heritage Council, commissioned a strategy from conservation architects Shaffrey and Associates for the long-term conservation of the remaining follies, and it was planned to implement this on a phased basis. Restoration works began in 2017. Graffiti remains an ongoing issue.Lost folly and garden features
Two garden areas, a pergola garden and a lavender garden, are long lost. There was also a dogs' graveyard. The "Druidic Circle" of Giant's Causeway basalt was lost at an earlier stage. There was also a yew walk and nymphaeum, which ran within the formal gardens once located behind the main house, and is attested in photographs.Stables
The elaborate Tudor red brick Ardilaun stables, lining three sides of a square, were designed by George Coppinger Ashlin, also the architect of All Saints Church at Raheny and built by Collon Brothers for £6,000. The ''Red Stables'' as they are called, because they are built using Portmarnock red brick and were renovated in the 1990s by Dublin City Council as the Red Stables Art Centre, with public facilities such as artists' residences upstairs, an exhibition space and a café, Olive's Room. Previous artists-in-residence include Niall de Buitléar, Tadhg McSweeney, and Paul McKinley. A Farmers' Market is held in the courtyard at weekends. This scheme has won international architecture awards.Lodges
Sealawn Lodge is located on the coast road and decorated with elaborate gables; in occupation since the 1950s, it was restored in 2017. Bedford Lodge, headquarters of Dublin City's parks and landscape department from 1978 to 1995, is on Mount Prospect Avenue; it is no longer part of the public park. Next door to it is Shellingford Lodge. Another lodge, on the coast road, occupied by Seosamh Mac Grianna for a time, is no longer extant.Gardens
The Rose Garden
In 1975, St Anne's Rose Garden was opened to the public. In 1980 it was given a Civic Award by Bord Failte and the Irish Town Planning Institute, and since 1981 it has been a centre for International Rose Trials. Its development led to the annual Rose Festival, now a popular event on the summer calendar for Dublin gardeners and families every July.Walled garden / former kitchen garden
The walled garden, including a fruit garden added to the estate by Bishop Plunkett, now holds a plant nursery for the Parks Department. Thousands of bedding plants, shrubs, trees, and floral tubs are produced annually in the nursery. There is a herbaceous garden area open during limited hours, and a fine clock tower, restored to working order in 2007. There is also a Physic or Herb Garden, maintained by the Irish Register of Herbalists with the city council, and a miniature rose garden. A Chinese garden, in theAllotments
Since 2009, Dublin City Council has provided public allotment gardens (allocated on a lottery basis) to meet demand by city residents for space to grow their own produce.Former features
St. Anne's House
Soon after he acquired 'Thornhill House' in 1835 Benjamin Lee Guinness married and started to make alterations and improvements to the house. In 1840, Frederick Darley Ogilby described 'St Anne's House' as havinv a castle-like appearance, of irregular Gothic construction with a high tower'. Some time later 'Thornhill House' was pulled down. In 1873, Sir Arthur Guinness commissioned James Franklin Fuller architect to remodel 'Thornhill House.' Thomas Millard was appointed builder for the works. There was a falling out between the architect and his client and George Coppinger Ashlin was entrusted with completing the house. It was described as being 'The most palatial house built in Ireland during the second half of the 19th. century'. The eleven-bay house was two storeys high, with a three-bay pedimented breakfront, with elaborate armorials in its tympanum supported on Corinthian pilasters superimposed on Ionic half columns. It was built in the Italian neo-classical style using Bath and Portland stones. There was a single-storey Ionic port-cochere. Pediments over the upper floor windows were segmental and those on the lower floor triangular. There was a fine curvilinear glasshouse/ conservatory designed and built by Turner attached to the house.Former walled garden
The walled garden next to the house also contained many features, of which few traces remain. The garden was entered through a ''claire-voie'' screen of bronze, painted yew green and elaborately gilded. The centre walk of the garden consisted of a castellated yew hedge with marble statuary along its length. The walk terminated in a nymphaeum, flanked by obelisks of yew and featuring a sculpted group of Jupiter and Thetis. Also in the walled house garden was an aviary with golden pheasants; a floral temple of arches and chains in cast iron; and a circular yew hedge with allegorical marble Italian statues representing the five continents, which were reflected in a great circular marble basin in the centre. The Georgian door-case of the original house ''Thornhill'' was also erected as an entrance to a French lavender garden.Leisure facilities
The park is intensively used by the sporting public. Facilities include 35 playing pitches. There is an all-weather cricket crease in the middle of the main playing fields area, and one pitch is floodlit for Gaelic games. North Dublin Softball Club also use the park for training. There are 18 hard-surfaced tennis courts (some managed by Raheny Tennis Club), and a par-3 golf course. There is a coffee and snack cabin by the golf and tennis courts. There are also 4 Boules (pétanque) courts, a BMX area, and a model car racing track. Woodland paths provide for walkers and joggers. There is a weekly free 5 km parkrun on Saturday mornings at 9:30 in the park.Fauna
Mammals present in the park include badgers, hedgehogs, rabbits, foxes, grey squirrels, house mice, field mice, pipistrelle bats and brown rats. Birds include sparrow hawk, woodcock and jay. The park has a greater-than-average diversity of bee species and is also notable for many species of butterflies.Squirrels
Flora
The park has a range of vegetation habitats and many historic trees. The plant collections are of national importance. There are also protected native plants and species of botanical interest. These are surveyed and managed by Dublin City Council Parks and Landscape Services Division.Blackbush or Heronstown
A cluster of about 15 cottages once existed at Blackbush Lane. They were removed around the 1850s.References
See also
All Saints' Church, Raheny, discussing a Church of Ireland church and verger's lodge built on the edge of the estate before the park was formed. {{Coord, 53.372324, N, 6.180929, W, type:landmark_region:IE, display=title Raheny Clontarf, Dublin Folly buildings in the Republic of Ireland Parks in Dublin (city) Rose gardens