Ely Place (Dublin) - History

History

The street was laid out in 1768.

The first few houses on the street (2-4, the North end) are neo-Georgian and were built in the 1970s.

The first house to be built on the street was Ely House (now No. 7/8). Nos. 7, 9 and 10 now stand where its garden and carriage entrance used to be. Built in 1771 by Gustavus Hume, it was occupied in 1776 by John La Touche, of the banking family. The Dublin stuccadore Michael Stapleton (1747–1801) worked this house - Stapleton's designs were for "Mrs. La Touche's Eating Parlour" and "Mrs. La Touche's Dining Parlour". It later became the residence of the Countess of Ely (Frances Monroe, wife of Lord Henry Loftus, both originally from Fermanagh). On the death of Henry Loftus, Lady Ely lived here for a further 40 years. At one time it belonged to Sir William Thornley Stoker, brother of Bram Stoker, whom Oliver St. John Gogarty used to visit when he lived on the street. The Knights of Saint Columbanus bought this house in 1922 and made it their headquarters.

Next door, at No.6, lived the Countess of Clare (Anne Whaley, wife of Lord Chancellor of Ireland John Fitzgibbon (1749–1802), died at Ely Place), who also employed Stapleton. Both ladies were known for their grand houses and their lavish entertainments therein. Both houses are richly decorated with elaborate plasterwork. The two houses at Nos.5 and 6 were taken into Government service in 1859, when they became the Offices of the General Valuation and Boundary Survey of Ireland under Sir Richard Griffith, Bart. It was here that Sir Richard completed his magisterial work on the land and tenement valuation of Ireland, which over time became known as the "Griffith Valuation". These buildings retained their grandeur through the next century until in 1998, the Valuation Office moved away from Ely Place after a tenancy of 138 years.

A neighbour on this street was John Philpot Curran (1750–1817), the lawyer and wit who defended the United Irishmen and whose daughter became enamoured of Robert Emmet.