The Holy Well at Drummartin
J Barker Map 1756
Holywell House - Kevin Harrington 1976
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Holeywell (sic) entrance and gatelodge - Kevin Harrington 1976
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Holywell Cottage
NAME Holeywell/Holywell Cottage/Holywell Park (Holey Well Cottage)
AREA LOCATION Kilmacud Road upper now Holywell housing estate.
MAP LOCATION OSI maps of 1838-1845 and 1898-1913 place it in the townland of
Drummartin and it is annotated as Holywell Cottage and Holywell Park
respectively.
GENERAL House on 8.5 acres with walled in garden and gate lodge. The cross on the
grounds marks the old Holy well (St Foinstain's?) and was later used to provide water to the house
when a pump was installed. Edward Groves Mason leased the house from Anthony Byrne
Darcy in 1822 as did Edward Alday in 1837. By 1839 it was advertised 'For Let' as a five
bedroom house with basement. It had a gate lodge, stabling for 5 horses, a coach house and
a granary. Circa 1920 Kilmacud Cottage was built in the grounds. In the 1960s the fields
of Holywell were the location for one of the biggest garden fates ever held in Dundrum. It was
held by the Parish of Taney to raise funds for the new Taney School. It included Helicopter rides,
fancy dress parade, dog show, pony rides etc. *William Hughes purchased a further 10 acres from
CIE (part of the old Harcourt Street rail line). This was farmed by John Lambert who supplied milk
to HB dairy at Hazelbrook, Rathfarnham. The house was closed up and the land let to a riding
school in the late 1970s. Later the 'house was demolished and the front gates closed with concrete'
(Kevin Harrington).
YEAR BUILT circa 1830, new house known as Kilmacud Cottage built on the grounds in the
1920's.
VALUATION In 1900 the valuation was 56 pounds and in the 1901 census it is noted as
13 having rooms occupied by family.
ARCHITECT Unknown
SOURCES Thom’s directories, contemporaneous newspapers, Registry of Deeds, NAI
Census & Wills, OSI Maps and Barker Map 1756.
OCCUPANTS
1822 Land leased by Edward Groves Mason
1837 Edward Alday
1839 - 1841 William George Walsh
1843 - 1847 Beauchamp Bagenal Hill
1855 Mary Josephine MacDonald rip (wife of Hugh)
1860 - 1861 George Meyler
1862 - 1864 Mrs James Mullins
1871 To let
1874 - 1879 Edward Hartigan
1880 - 1884 Samuel Geoghegan
1887 - 1894 Solomon Henry Darcus
1901 Mrs Fitzpatrick (Rose Ann returning to Sydney Australia)
1901 - 1906 Percy Considine
1910 Morris Family
1910 - 1917 William Henry Wilkinson
1927 - 1929 Mrs Murray
1930 Brunton Family
1933 Mrs Eric Claude Neligan
1937 Mrs Walter Scott
1937 Vacant and for sale on 8 acres
1940 - 1941 Laurence Martin
1943 - 1957 Alfred Denis Pringle
1964 - 1972 William Warren Hughes
c1976 House demolished
1989 Sorohan Builders - Application for 208 houses to be built.
1993 Sorohan Builders - Application for 210 houses to be built.
1971 Kilmacud Cottage - Haslam family
2000 - 2024 Kilmacud Cottage - Paul and Collette O'Leary
2024 Kilmacud Cottage for sale quoting 1.45m
STAFF
1837 John Fitzpatrick - Gatekeeper
1901 James McNulty - Farm labourer living on site
1905 Michael Coyle - Gardener
1911 Millie Hobson - Housemaid
Rose Larrissey - Cook
1940's Frank Buckles - living at gate lodge
1971 Oliver Dunne
CURRENT
STATUS No longer extant
CONTRIBUTOR © June Bow & Karen Poff
DATE January 2019
* Our thanks to Simon Hughes for additional information.