The Great Northern Railway (Ireland) in the area of Baldoyle, Howth, and Sutton, County Dublin

By Michael J. Hurley

The story of railway, tram, and bus in this area of North Dublin in Ireland. This book brings together data from the previously published The Train To Howth and chapters from author's other publications. Many photographs, maps, and illustrations add to the depth of information in this book covering the life of the railway companies in the area from 1844 to the present date.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Michael J. Hurley
• Release date: Mar 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301888023

Michael J. Hurley

Michael John Hurley was born in Baldoyle County Dublin in June 1950. He has harboured a lifelong interest in the history of the local hinterland. Michael has written the following books on the locality:'Where Came Dark Stranger', 'The View from The Grandstand', 'The Train to Howth', 'Articles, Particles, & Facts, 'Tales of Old Baldoyle', 'Baldoyle The Racecourse Village', 'Baldoyle, Portmarnock, Sutton - A Local History','The Light of Other Days', 'An Introduction to The Wild Flowers of Baldoyle', 'A Quick Guide To Old Baldoyle', 'The Story of Stapolin'. 'Cill Fhionntáin', 'Sutton, Baldoyle Musical Society 40th Anniversary', 'Baldoyle 1911 - The Census Year', 'The Great Northern Railway (Ireland) in the areas of Baldoyle, Howth, Sutton, County Dublin','The Howth Peninsula From Old Postcards' (with Anne Murphy). He has also released two DVD programmes on the locality. He has a photo collection of some 3,000 local images and gives talks and photo presentations to community groups in the area of north Dublin. For family reasons Michael has lived in County Galway since 2013. His latest e-books are on the subject of the Galway General Omnibus Company Limited, Galway Horse Trams, Galway Bay Steamboat Company, Wild flowers in Lackagh, and Wild Birds in Lackagh .

Book preview

The Great Northern Railway (Ireland)

in the areas of

Baldoyle, Howth, and Sutton,

County Dublin

(Ian Ellott collection)

Michael J. Hurley

Cover photograph shows former Dublin & South Eastern Railway No. 461 at Sutton on 25th March 2012.

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Possibly as early as 1905 is this postcard view of Sutton & Baldoyle Station looking towards Howth. The houses in the near distance are Arundel and Suncroft, the latter the erstwhile home of champion international golfer Joe Carr. Is that silly porter really going to cross to the up platform with the train almost upon him? Notice the proliferation of enamel advertising signs along the platform wall.

Glover tank number 3 at Baldoyle & Sutton in the late fifties (A. Donaldson / W. T. Scott collection).

Beginnings

In early 1835 Thomas Brodigan of Piltown House near to Drogheda advocated the construction of a rail line connecting Dublin with his own town. In August he spoke at a meeting to promote the venture and to discuss two alternative routes, inland or coastal. William Cubitt, a well known engineer was engaged to survey the two routes and after some eight weeks found in favour of the coastal option. After lengthy wrangle a Parliamentary Act was eventually passed on 13th August 1836. Legal expenses had cost the promoters almost £30,000.

Thomas Brodigan claimed expenses for his attendances in London for the discussions surrounding the proposed railway. He was not happy that he should be so much out of pocket as shown in his statement to the enquiry:

My protracted residence in London led to another loss to me of about One Hundred Guineas. I left behind, in haggard, 400 bushels of wheat, the produce of 54 Irish acres, the crop of '35. My usual time of selling wheat is in May, when prices are at the highest, and in that year wheat sold, in that month, at 32s. per bushel. Not being at home to superintend the operation, it was not thrashed, and I sold it at 26s. and 26s. 6d. on the approach of the harvest following. This is one of the many pecuniary sacrifices I had to sustain through my support of the Drogheda Railway; for, as you may recollect, it was in that year my house was building, and during my absence the tradesmen and labourers had their hands in my pockets, as they were left to themselves, and I could not direct the operations.

I hope you will excuse this detail, which shows that my pecuniary outlay was considerable. I hope you will also excuse the expression of my opinion, that this is the time when my re-embursement should be entertained. I suspect his comments about his workers were well received in Drogheda! His expenses had come to a total of £1,853.

The Minutes of Evidence of The Committee of The Dublin & Drogheda Railway which was published by J. L.Cox in 1836 tells us something of local life at that time immediately prior to the coming of the railway. Howth had a population of 797 while Baldoyle had 1009. The former had 17 families in trade or manufacture while the latter had 31. The Earl of Howth, Lord Talbot of Malahide, and James Souter of Howth each held shares in the company. Souter described himself as 'Superintendant of the works at Howth Harbour and local agent of Lord Howth'. He reported Howth as having 60-100 fishing boats at any one time and coal and seed potatoes as the principal imports of the port. Housing accommodation he described as 'indifferent.' He did report that 6 building scites (sic) were being developed and that 12 - 16 passengers daily made the journey from Howth to Dublin on the mail car or on one of the three hackney cars at a fare of one shilling. He valued land at £50 per acre.

Mr. Hoare, a fish wholesaler from Pill Lane in the city stated that Baldoyle fishermen landed their catches at Howth, Rush, Skerries, or Bray. Of housing in Baldoyle he noted some to be 'very poor' and some to be 'very comfortable'. He reported only one fishing boat at Malahide and added that 'I would be ashamed to be seen in it’. Dray loads of fish for market took up to two hours to reach the city and the D&DR hoped to attract this traffic on to the railway.

Originally the line was proposed to leave Dublin, come out along the Clontarf seafront before turning inland to Raheny, but objections by Lord Ardilaun of St Anne’s and the Vernons of Clontarf prevented this course. The necessary land was acquired in many cases much against the will of the landowners. Publican and farmer, Mrs Duff of Baldoyle claimed compensation of £600, but was eventually awarded only £21. The land from Raheny to Kilbarrack Lane cost £1,593.7.0 for a mile and a half, and the stretch from there to Malahide cost £4,724.11.3.

In early 1838, the first section of the permanent way, the 5.5 miles from the Royal Canal to Portmarnock, was put out to tender and in June of that year the contract was awarded to W. R. Weeks at a cost of £49,830. This included £38,830 for the section to Raheny Brook and