The Scots Presbyterian Church is a ruined former church on

Seán McDermott Street Seán McDermott Street () is a street in northeast Dublin, Ireland. It is divided into Seán McDermott Street Lower (east end) and Seán McDermott Street Upper (west end). Located in the north inner city, it runs west–east as an extension of ...

(formerly Gloucester Street North or Gloucester Street Lower) in Dublin 1, Ireland. The church was designed in a Greek revival style by architect Duncan Campbell Ferguson and completed in 1846 at a cost of £1,800. The building operated as a Presbyterian church from 1846 until 1888 when the congregation was subsumed by the nearby ''Clontarf and Scots Presbyterian Church''. The building continued to operate as a sometime church for various services until 1896, at which point the building began being used by

the Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

owing to its position in the centre of the

Monto Monto was the nickname for the one-time red light district in the northeast of Dublin, Ireland. The Monto was roughly the area bounded by Talbot Street, Amiens Street, Gardiner Street and Seán McDermott Street (formerly Gloucester Street) in ...

area of Dublin. In the early 1900s it was converted into a flour mill but its external appearance remained largely intact. It was operated by AW Ennis Limited until a fire in the 1980s forced the business to move to

Virginia, County Cavan Virginia () is a town in County Cavan, Ireland. Founded in the 17th century as a plantation town, it now holds both local industry and commuter housing. History Foundation Virginia was founded in the early 17th century, at Aghanure (), during ...

where it remains as of July 2020. It was subsequently used as a grain store.

History

The church replaced an earlier ''Ebenezer Chapel'' (which was established in 1820 as an independent chapel) which the second secession synod congregation had purchased on the corner of

Hawkins Street Hawkins Street () is a street in central Dublin, Ireland. It runs south from Rosie Hackett Bridge, at its junction with Burgh Quay, for to a crossroads with Townsend Street, where it continues as College Street. History Hawkins Street dates f ...

and

D'Olier Street D'Olier Street ( ; ) is a street in the southern city-centre of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. It and Westmoreland Street are two broad streets whose northern ends meet at the southern end of O'Connell Bridge over the River Liffey. Its sout ...

, Dublin 2 in 1836 for £600. The Scots Church and Ormond Quay Presbyterian church amalgamated in 1938, with the Ormond Quay congregation joining the Scots congregation. In 2003, the Ormond Quay and Scots Church voted to merge with the Clontarf Presbyterian Church, sanctioned by the General Assembly to create the Clontarf & Scots Presbyterian Church, and they moved to Clontarf, Dublin.

Architecture

The squat church was constructed in Irish granite with a

prostyle Prostyle and Prostylos (), literally meaning "with columns in front", is an architectural term designating temples (especially Greek and Roman) featuring a row of columns on the front. The term is often used as an adjective when referring to th ...

tetrastyle A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cultu ...

pedimented portico with four fluted Doric columns on a

stylobate In classical Greek architecture, a stylobate () is the top step of the crepidoma, the stepped platform upon which colonnades of temple columns are placed (it is the floor of the temple). The platform was built on a leveling course that fl ...

supporting frieze with Greek script which have the words "ΜΟΝΩ ΣΟΦΩ ΘΕΩ ΣΩΤΗΡI ΗΜΩΝ ΔOΞA" (Romanized ''monō sophō Theō sōtēri hēmōn doxa''), referring to a biblical passage from Jude 1:25 and translating roughly as "To only-wise God, be glory through hesavior". Above this sits a modillioned pediment with

acroteria An acroterion, acroterium, (pl. akroteria) is an architectural ornament placed on a flat pedestal called the ''acroter'' or plinth, and mounted at the apex or corner of the pediment of a building in the classical style. An acroterion placed ...

situated at either end and at the apex. The majority of the external features remained intact until the 1980s with a Dublin City Council photo from 1968 detailing the external walls, chimneys and roof as they would have been when the building was first constructed. Following the fire, the majority of the building was demolished for safety reasons. The remaining facade and side walls now sit at the front of 2000s apartment development although many of the main features are still intact. The buildings risk status is currently listed as at 'moderate' by

An Taisce An Taisce – The National Trust for Ireland (; "An Taisce" meaning "the store" or "the treasury"), established on a provisional basis in September 1946, and incorporated as a company based on an “association not for profit” in June 1948, is ...

and is currently listed on the Record of Protected Structures under RPS 7480.

Popular culture

The building appears in a derelict state on the front cover of the 1997 single ''Keep on Chewin'' by the Jubilee Allstars.

References

{{reflist

External links

Video from the 1940s showing the church operating as a flour mill
Former churches in Dublin (city) Presbyterian churches in Dublin (city) Greek Revival buildings Greek Revival church buildings Greek Revival architecture in Ireland Demolished buildings and structures in Dublin

History

Architecture

Popular culture

See also

References

External links