What a tragedy that Belcamp College in Dublin 17, a remarkable building boasting a fine connection to James Hoban, architect of the White House in Washington D.C, should fall victim to fire.
There are some excellent images of the college in this 2009 video:
By remarkable coincidence, there was an article in The Sunday Times last week detailing the condition the building was in now, noting its historic importance and the sad condition it is currently in. The report noted that the council had begun removing stain glass windows of importance from the premises.
There is some video footage of the fire last night already making its way onto YouTube:
Local Counciller Larry O’Toole raised some good points this morning.
Belcamp College was an historic building and its destruction by fire is a major loss. After it was closed as a school it was taken over by a developer, Gannon Ltd. and had lain unused since, ending up in NAMA with other Gannon properties.
This fire raises major questions for Gannon and NAMA. Why was this building not secured better? Was security increased after previous break-ins?
I work dead near here and there’s often lads joyriding through the grounds.
Absolutely bugger all security that I ever see there.
Security here at one stage was pretty good. I was caught by the remote CCTv trying to get some photographs of the buildings. Shane how they jus tlet a onderful place die like that.
I was there last week and I was told that the place had also being set on fire last Wednesday,6th.There was seemingly young fellas on horse back riding through the corridors,one brandishing a machete.Every window in the Manor House was smashed,white net curtains were blowing wildly from each window.It was like a scene from The Blitz.This was last week.I was a border there from 1976 to 1981,so this was like watching your own house going up in flames before your eyes.Yesterday evening I drove by at 18:30 and the gates were wide open.It is heartbreaking to see this.We are spending €25,000,000 protecting President Barack Obama and The Queen,yet here we have a building designed by the same guy that the designed the White House being subjected to the greatest form of terrorism,IGNORANCE.
Quinner
q
http://leonotron.com/belcamp/belcamp.html
I walked right up to the school today, brought tears to my eyes to see what has become of her. I was there as a day pupil from 79 to 82, some of the best days of my life where spent in this great old place
Such a waste of A beautiful place. I fished in the lake as A young lad. I was in the college from 79 to81. It was the Beverley hills of nth Dublin. Nothing but very fond memories of the college. Would love to hear from any lads in group D yr79 to 81regards
school reunion for all past pupils of Belcamp. If you are intrested come along this friday 10 6 2011 at seven thirty in Davy Byrnes in Duke st off Grafton st city centre or if you are a past pupul of class of 79 to81 groupe certificate I would like to hear how you are and have a chat about the best yrs of our lives. hope to hear from you Paullonergan139@gmail.com
I Was there when it was burned:ztheres stables beside that college now the place is full of horses:)
What a shame ! During my OE in ireland(2007-2008) I worked at the boat yard in Malahide, towards the end of my stay i found myself with out a place to stay. Luckly the owner of the boat yard also owned belcamp college and allowed me to stay there for a month until my visa was up. There was already a couple of guys from the marina staying there so I picked out a room got the heater on !! It was a beautiful old building but could get a little scary walking up that long pitch black driveway at night. I was only just talking about the place with a mate and got online to show him some pics and a saw the news about the fire. I hope my old house mates wernt still there when went up.
was a student in belcamp boarding school for 3 years pity it went on fire
Sorry, but you don’t know what went on for the boarders. I was a boarder for 3 years in the 70s and it was like upstairs downstairs. We barely got any decent food and there was a christian brother (Fitzpatrick) that was busy molesting anyone he could – I got grabbed by the balls regularly, I can assure you it was no paradise….a pretty scary place for a kid in fact. Many of them deserve to be shot.
Hi jim read your valid comment. Very surprised I had heard there was some neglect, But not too the extreme you mention as regarding the sexual abuse I sugest you go and file your complaint with the redress board and A good brief As it is not too late regards Paul lonergan
Same thing happened to Belcamp House in the mid to late nineties – not long after there was a preservation order put on it I think. Unlike the art-deco garage in near Holles St Hospital there was never a court order to re-build up in D17. More’s the pity, it was a lovely house and had been an active part of Coolock until quite recently before that (I’m sure there’s a better way to put that).
.You used be able to go further up Coolock Lane before they laid the N32. Past the coalyard and the halting site. There was a sharp turn then if I remember it right with the gates to the college right on the bend itself. And then further up there was the turn into Belcamp House, over across the little valley of the Mayne.
The last tenant in the house had lived in a few places around the country following his deportation from America. He had served (quite a bit of) time in prison for his part in burning a draft office during the Vietnam War. I think this was in Milwaukee, but I’m not 100%. There were others involved and when they were released, as Michael was/is Irish-born, he was deported.
His wife and kids came with him. After a few years living out in the sticks, he found himself out in North County on the edge of a new estate, Darndale (modelled on some estate in Birmingham and, like the Ballymun flats, never repeated).
And following his religious convictions he left his front door unlocked for the duration of their stay – about ten years I think. So loads of people started going to these born-again meetings that used be held up there. I went along one Autumn Saturday night back in ’82, having being told it was a youth club. When I then heard it was some kind of prayer meeting I thought oh bloody hell but went along anyway out of curiosity.
I didn’t have any beliefs then and even though I tried for a bit I still don’t now but I kept going for the next two years and had the best time. Half of the northside was there. In no particular alphabetical order you had Artane, Ballymun, Clontarf, Coolock, Darndale, Donnycarney, Donaghmede, Edenmore, Finglas, Glasnevin, is there a H, Killester, Priorswood, Raheny.
I know everyone thinks, oh folk group and all that, and there were plenty who had their deep faith but they were nothing like that bunch in the caravan with Father Ted.
It was like that thing that Rita Marley said about her faith – that it was something real, that you could take something from it. Michael was letting other people live and work on the land around the house trying to make a go of market-gardening. You know that bit where people say Jesus was a socialist, well that’s what it was like.
That book that came out, Where Were You?, reminded me of all that because you had all this going on at the same time as the (music) cults scene was at one of it’s peaks. They had a festival in a field two miles outside Newtownmountkennedy in August ’83 and there must’ve been the best part of a thousand people there – some of them decidedly weird (but that’s another tale). These aren’t Youth Defence people on an anti-divorce beano by the way, they were ordinary lads and girls just doing what they do.
The same thing was on again the following year in Coolock but by then my attention had wandered.
Around the late eighties I think Michael headed for the sticks again and made Mayo his home for several years. Eventually US Immigration relented and let him and his family back across the water.
There is just one wall left standing of Belcamp House. The old bridge is so gone to ruin that if I hadn’t driven over it myself thirty (very) odd years ago I would have said it never was fit for cars. Where the house stood has been used for sustained dumping over the years, and judging by the number of spent cartridges there last time around, there’s a bit of target practice too.
I tried to get pictures of the house as it used to be but that place on the quays that used to have them all racked out like LPs is gone now. Anyone got any?
[…] April 2011 – following a fire at architectural gem Belcamp College, Dublin 17, environmental activist Ruadhan Mac Eoin sent Dublin City Council the […]
Hi niall past pupil of the camp it is in a pity full state now as i a walk the grounds on a regular basis the fire is on u tube. the best memories of school will never be forgot. As i fished the lake as a kid on summer days and evenings. paullonergan139@gmail.com
Burn baby Burn it was a place of abuse that I have never witnessed before or again in my life . Father Ted Barrett was the worst of them followed by Biddy Mulligan i saw the worst abuse of a young English boarder who was flung along a corridor by his hair by Barrett the abuser the boy ran away after that . I left the next year after complaining to my parents of the abuse of children under their care . I now live in Australia if anyone knows of the location of Ted the Abuser Barrett let me know as I will gladly travel to put a pint glass in his face .
hi rory
Hi rory biddy mulligan is in inchi core retreat house for priests. i only spoke to him recentley.on the phone
I was there just the other day, there is now a gap in the gate, it is beautiful, it is terrible to see such an amazing building just going to waste and the lake and many , MANY trees around it are beautiful me and my friends call it out own secret narnia (don’t judge it we are little 2 year olds) but it is a beautiful places wish they would take better care of it and do something but I think they are rebuilding it and I thought I seen some security there but I’m not sure. Wish they would let you closer to the building again. I used to go and have a look around it but now I think the have it fenced up.
Whatever happened to the Harry Clarke stain glass windows that were in the Chapel? Beautiful works of art !!
Barry,hi and how are you? I filmed the windows in the chapel for the last time the day before they were removed by a specialist conservation company from Galway.They are now ,I’m quite sure in the basement of the National Gallery,I have the video footage of my last visit,very sad but a unique piece of imagery.I also managed to remove a ”fan” of glass that was above the entrance hall to the main house.It was in 7 pieces but I intend to get it professionally restored.It has the inscription of the original glazier and dated 1805.
Ger Quinn
”QUINNER”
1976- 1981 Border
Ger, Thank you so much for your reply, I certainly appreciate !! By any chance do you still have your recording of the Harry Clarke windows? My wife Tina & I are H.C. enthusiasts and have travelled all around Ireland photographing his work. In fact we are coming over this July to view his works there in Dublin (Terenure, Ranelagh, Harold’sCross & Rathfarnham), Co Tipperary ( Cloughjordan & Ballylooby) then on up to Mayo ( Ballinrobe, Roundfort, Kilmaine, Claremorris, Newport, Cong & Knock) — it will be a busy time for us but we can’t wait !!!! Strange that we heard from you TODAY ( January 6th) as this is the 84th anniversary of his death !!!! We’ve always felt ( without sounding weird) that Harry Clarke has guided us in our journey. I hope to hear from you again. Barry Fangman Batavia, Ohio
hi Barry,I have the footage on my laptop.If you send me your e-mail I will see if I can send it to you.I remember trying to send a small clip of a night out in Temple Bar to my friend in Japan and my PC said that the file was too big to send???I am not in any way computer literate,I just get by Barry but if you tell me what to do I will send it to you.It is probably the only time these windows will ever be seen in situ in the church again.When you come home Barry I can meet up with you if all else fails.I wouldn’t mind following up where things were left off by contacting Father Mulligan in the Oblate Fathers in Inchicore and possibly then the National Museum.Do you realise Barry that similar windows sold for €6.million per window at an auction in the U.K!!!! And I think there were about 12 of them!!!
Talk to you soon Barry
Gerry Q
Morning Ger !!! We were so glad to receive your reply !! So glad to hear that you have the film clip of the chapel on your laptop…. Like you , I’m not at all computer savvy. Perhaps, if anyone else who reads this note and knows how to download it can give us advice…….but do try and forward it to me just to see if it might go through. We would really enjoy meeting up with you in Dublin– we have a good friend who works for Tourism Ireland and he too is a big Harry Clarke fan and will be taking us to see HC windows there in Dublin. Yes, I have seen where HC windows went “off the Chart” when they were auctioned off by Whyte’s there in Dublin. I’ll discuss more with you by private e-mail but Tina & I really appreciate anything you can do to help us. My email is Bfang2016@gmail.com looking forward to hearing from you again… Have a great week-end !!!!! Barry
Hi Barry
I’ve done a lot of work for his niece and nephew over the years. Nephew was also a talented artist – he passed away a few years ago and there was an exhibition of his work out in Howth later that year.
Hi Mayme, How interesting that you worked for the Clarke family — Harry certainly was a genius !!!! Did they ever speak of their Uncle or his work ? We have been photographing much of his church stain glass windows while on our trips over to Ireland. In fact, we are coming over this July to catch more of his work there in Dublin and then heading over to Tipperary & Mayo. We have some excellent sites to visit. Please feel free to e-mail me :- (Bfang2016@gmail.com). Would enjoy hearing from you.
Barry, I’ll be in touch later in the week.
Does anyone have any old photos of Belcamp students from 1929?
My late father Michael Patrick Winston was a boarder from 1929 and played in Leinster Junior Championship (Croke Park?)
Many thanks.
Dermot Winston
Just reading a book about Countess Markievicz and apparently she and her family leased Belcamp House in 1909. It was used by her as a lodging and training camp for the fledgling Fianna. So sad to read of it’s demise so typical of modern Ireland!!
Lovely reading all these comments from over the years, very pained by the bad memories people have, how amazing these industrail and boarding school could have been had they have been run by healthy adults, they should have turned boys out to be all round self sufficent and educated. The Artane boys were equiped to run the sourrounding land and farm animals and learn crafts as well as education, such a shame they were places of inhumane abuse. Nice to hear not everyone had the same experiences for a change. Sad it was burned down but maybe deserving from the prospective of the damaged.