Concrete Lamposts

I like these lamposts as well But I would rather see them moved to a more suitable spot all together to keep their effect.
There are also three or four remaining on D’Olier St in front of the Irish Times offices but the other side of the street is lined with the silver replica lamps you metion. I would rather the whole areas was replaced with the replica lamps and the concrete ones moved.

Also in this area, the CC have removed the small grassy island in front of Pearse St station to make way for a bus lane. I hate this policy of concreting over these small grassy spaces. The end up looking so bland and dead. As usual the finish on the new island is very bad… sign posts abound, nothing intersting done to set off the monument in the centre.

FYI

These concrete lamposts lined O’Connell Street and bridge since the forties, possibly earlier. They also framed Nelson’s column. They did look unusual and attractive.

There still are single arm concrete lamposts in Glasnevin, Rathmines, Killbarrack and the old Nass Road.

Many of the concrete lamps were still on O’Connell St and Bridge until about 10 years ago..maybe removed as part of the centre mall widening in 1988 – 90. I am almost certain that I have seen a couple of the actual lamps in the Globe bar I think… some bar anyhow. That might give you an idea what happened to these lamps.

I can’t understand why they replaced them… especially since they were replaced by such poor quality lamp posts. Also there seems to be no logic or agreed design for replacing street light in the city. Litterally each street seems to have its own type and many street have a number of different varieties. This might be okay when street lighting is bieng used as a feature, eg Henry Street. But I think the CC should have one or two specific designs for general use.

Bollocks – I love those lamps, very cool and very much of their time and not faux-anything. Definitely the best lamps in town, can’t stand those olde-worlde replacements – they don’t add anything new for me. By all means replace those bloody awful 70’s crap, esp low-pressure sodium (orange) lights but can we do something of our time and not faux anything?

Graham – I remember going to an antique shop on Francis street during the 80s and the entire back yard was full of green painted lampstands that my father said were originally gas lamps that had been changed over to electric – but there were definitely 000’s of them there. So I assume the CC sold them

Just amazing how little we see, the way these vanish.

Seriously strange to go Victorian now, recreating the worst, most miserable period in Dublin life. Then probably the Corpo get their design influences from pub design, formica in, formica out, victorian in, out, bleached wood in

Perhaps it is like planting conifers and whacking out the broadleaf trees.

One item of street furniture which fascinates me is concrete lampposts. Though now quite rare this type of street furniture was quite common until ten years ago. There a few varieties of concrete lamppost. The first type could be found on the following streets in Dublin and in counties Antrim and Down.

-Baggot Street
-The Quays
-Grattan Row, outside Inchicore railway works
-various roads in Finglas
-Seafield Road Clontarf
-James Larkin Road
-Winetavern Street
-Old Finglas Road

-Ballycastle
-Bangor.

A few examples can still be seen on Sandwith Street, near Pearse Station and on Wexford Street.

There were single- and double-arm versions of these, the latter intended for dual carriageways. These were located on:

-Baggot Street, outside Bank of Ireland headquaters
-Patrick Doyle Road, adjacent to the Nine Arches, Milltown
-Grattan Row.

I recall once watching a documentary, “The Seven Ages of the Irish Free State”. One item featured was the inauguration of electric street lighting in the 1930s on the Dublin-Dún Laoghaire road (Rock Road in Booterstown). An “Irish Independant” article was shown with with what were clearly lampposts of this type. In the 1960s LEGO produced Matchbox sized versions of these.

There were two variations of the above lamppost, one on which the arm was the same as the above but without the curl from which the light was hung. This version was on Market Street, Portadown in the 1950s. This is apparent in the street scenes on http://www.portadownphotos.freehome. With the second variation the arm extended out horizontally. This type of lamppost could be seen on:

-Naas Road, from beginning of dual carriageway to Kylemore Road crossroads
-At Superquinn, Finglas
-At Cork Street/ Dolphin’s Barn, near the Coombe Hospital there was a double arm version.

There was also a scaled down or “baby” version of the above lamppost which was mainly used on residential roads and housing estates such as Edenmore and Fairview Avenue on the northside of Dublin. There are two examples of these in Oldcastle, Co. Meath. A feature of this lamppost was a bar above the capital on which a ladder could rest. In former years these lampposts invariably had a cone shaped mercury light hung from them.

It is interesting that there was a definite of design with these lampposts, with well-proportioned base and capital. It could be argued that these lampposts have an “Art Deco” style to them.

The second type of lampost, of much plainer design but still quite aesthetic can still be seen on Townsend Street; Brookwood Avenue; Greencastle Road, Coolock; Jervis Street (a few examples); and Dartry Road. These lampposts were formerly on the following streets:

-Oscar Traynor Road
-North Circular Road (west of Phibsboro’)
-Infirmary Road.

A rather chunky double arm lamppost was on O’Connell Street, Westmoreland Street, D’Olier Street and College Green. One or two examples can still be seen. There were also a couple of miscellaneous varieties of lamppost. One type, a double arm version was found on Beresford Place with a single example outside the King Sitric Restaurant in Howth. Another type was to found in the grounds of the Bon Secours Hospital in Glasnevin.

I understand that Moracrete produced most of these lampposts in Crumlin, Dublin. What is ironic is that for an item that could be regarded as rather British, the production of these lampposts was a result of De Valera encouraging import substition during the 1930s. Tariffs were put on British imports which resulted in the establishment of Irish industries to produce these products.

While spalling on these lampposts has resulted on them being decapitated or removed, they were nevertheless an aesthetic item of street furniture compared with junk that graces the Howth Road between Killester and Blackbanks or in Santry Village or the tacky rubbish now found on Abbey Street and the Quays.

Stephens Green: such a cop-out to replace the streetlamps with the same unattractive design. Another example is the new traffic island on the south side. The CC installed new lights on plain modern posts and then added a faux-period lantern the same as those around the Green’s perimiter. What is that all about!

There is a complete lack of consistency and asthetic about the types of street lighting used in the city. Its appalling and I am sure it must involve a serious waste of money, all those conflicting designs and tenders.

Apparently Dublin has its own lampost museum of sorts.

An official in DCC started a policy of retaining at least one sample of each discotnued line during the 1980’s and they were placed randomely inside Merrion Square.

A bit bizarre one might think considering that the park closes when the lamposts would be operational. However at least samples exist and therefore no excuses can be made for the pastiche junk that is costing the ratepayers a fortune.

I hate to ask but do you know any lamp restorers?
One vandal and bye bye unfortunately, the colleges here have NO RESTORATION TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES. Quite in contrast to our european peer group. In fact it will be another twelve years before we know how much built heritage exists. Sadly many of the finishing touches to streetscapes and street furniture will probably have dissappeared.

i would say the fact the park is enclosed is the reason why they were broken.