The Strawberry Beds

The cover photograph shows a typical cottage that lined the Lower Road along the Strawberry Beds in the past. This cottage belonged to Mary Byrne and lies at the bottom of the Rugged lane. The wonderful colours of aubrietia and wisteria, as seen here, would have been commonly grown to adorn the dwellings. Families would also grow climbing roses outside the front door of the cottages. Many of the cottages had a porch for shelter outside the front door and the roses would cover this shelter completely. These roses, which would give off a wonderful smell in the summertime, were a treasure for the bees and other insects.

The photograph on the back cover is The Wren’s Nest weir. The weir was built in the late 1600s or the early 1700s. The original form was probably much more rudimentary than the present day structure.

Disclaimer: The author acknowledges that there may be errors in this publication. Every effort has been made to verify all contents within the book and the author accepts no responsibility for inaccuracies that have gone unnoticed. The author apologises for any errors that may have slipped through. The author has made every effort to identify the original owners of photographs and documents reproduced in this book. The author apologises if contact was not made with the individuals concerned.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means—graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or information storage and retrieval systems—without the prior written permission of the author.

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A CIP catalogue for this book is available from the National Library.

Published by ORIGINAL WRITING LTD., Dublin, 2013.
Printed by CLONDALKIN GROUP, Glasnevin, Dublin 11

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my father, who had a wish to write about the Strawberry Beds from the day he moved on to the Lower Road in 1947. He always appreciated the uniqueness of the area with its agricultural tradition, market gardening, its richness of beauty, its cultural heritage and, of course, its people. Unfortunately he died in 1971 without having commenced the task.

I decided to undertake the task and fulfil his wish and, while I may not be as eloquent as he might have been, nonetheless I hope I have gone some way in describing the life and times of the Strawberry Beds.

While my father was the inspiration for the book, my mother, who, despite only coming to live on the Strawberry Beds in 1950, developed a great knowledge of the area and its people. She corrected a great many of my mistakes and I frequently sought her help.

Acknowledgements

In 1973 my sister Helen and I interviewed some of the oldest residents on the road. Ms. Mary Byrne was a wonderful source of local information with an amazing memory. Mrs. Carney, Mrs. Doyle, Jack Lovely, Mrs. Nash, Gertie Murray and May Tobin on Somerton Lane were a joy to gather history and stories from. Later on Ms. Shelia Doyle was of great assistance; she demonstrated great clarity of memory. Later still information was gathered from Ger Lanigan, Patrick Tobin, Maureen O’Rourke, Michael Harford, James Lynam and many others who filled in the details. Much of this information was gathered informally.

Mary Eustace
Mary Shackleton
The Wren’s Nest
The Strawberry Hall
The Anglers Rest
Gretta Higgins
John Higgins
Robert Fry
Shelia Kavanagh
Hugh O’Connor
Mick Harford
Caroline Corballis
Michael Daly
Gerard O’Byrne
Rose Blackburn.
Eileen Troy

The assistance of the Royal Society of Antiquities in providing stored photographs was invaluable. Permission granted by the National Library to use photographs from the Laurence Collection is acknowledged. Permission was granted by the National Archives to source information and reproduce it in this book. This permission is acknowledged and appreciated. The Ordinance Survey of Ireland granted permission for the maps contained within this publication to be reproduced.

INTRODUCTION

The Strawberry Beds are to be found if one travels west of Dublin city for six miles. They lie on the banks of the River Liffey, the northern bank facing the sun, and are without doubt the best known feature of the Liffey Valley. One travels through Chapelizod, up Glenmaroon Hill, down Knockmaroon Hill and onto the Lower Road. From here, with the steep hills on your right hand, the river on your left, a pleasant journey awaits you, whether on foot, bicycle, car, or horse and trap as would have been the main mode of transport years ago. The Strawberry Beds are of course an agricultural feature where the local people have grown strawberries for nearly two hundred and fifty years. The strawberries, grown as a commercial crop, were transported to the city’s fruit and vegetable markets for sale to the hotels, restaurants and homes. However, it was for the sale of the strawberries with fresh cream on cabbage leaves from the cottages to travellers, daytrippers or locals that the Strawberry Beds was renowned. It was a delight that hundreds of Dubliners would enjoy for years and years as they jaunted along the Strawberry Beds.

Strawberries date back to the late 1700s and it is mentioned in Cnuacha by O’Driscoll that Lord Annaly grew the fruit in his estate at Luttrellstown. The fruit grown at this period in time was a wild european variety and in 1780 a hybrid was developed in the USA. A series of new hybrid varieties were being grown in Europe by 1817. They were genetically modified to have a more succulent taste, a larger berry, and a more commercial viability. The name strawberry may have derived its name from the runners the plant puts out or ‘stray berries’. The southern border of the Luttrellstown Estate and further hills along the Lower Road descend steeply to the river and it is on these slopes that the strawberry, exposed to the warmth of the sun would ripen into a tasty succulent fruit.

Cottages, a distinctive feature of the Strawberry Beds, were always placed at the bottom of the slopes along the roadside. These cottages lined the roadside from the bridge at Lucan to Knockmaroon Hill. The hills that were cultivated rose up behind the houses and every square foot would be brought into production. Up until the early 1900s land was held by lease, so it was important that produce was maximised.

The photograph above, which is part of the Laurence Collection, features typical cottages on the Strawberry Beds. They are on the road edge, which is a dusty track, they have thatched roofs, are whitewashed in colour and single storey in elevation. They probably had no more than two to three rooms for the family. The actual position of the houses in the photograph above is difficult to pinpoint because they lie on both sides of the road. Currently, there are only three houses on the riverbank between Shackletons Mill and the bottom of Knockmaroon Hill. Building so close to the river carries obvious flooding risks. The photograph here may have been taken at Knockmaroon Hill because the road rises at this point and the view is looking towards the Anglers Rest public house. It is from cottages such as these that the strawberries and cream would be sold.

The concept of this book, while accounting for the evolution, history, and culture of the area, is ultimately to remember the names and peoples of the Strawberry Beds that have gone before and to describe the evolution of this rural community. Information was sourced from elderly residents as far back as 1973. Many of the stories are descriptive, sometimes recollections, or anecdotal. More formal information was gathered later on from archives, schools, various documents and written correspondence. Informal public house chats also filled in gaps in the tales and stories.

Photograph of the most elderly residents taken in 1968 in the Old School House. James White, Bridie Fagan, Mary Byrne are in the back row while Mrs. White, Mrs. Carney and Mrs. Plunkett are seated in front.

Mary Byrne had a wonderful memory and her recollections went back to end of the 1800s. She could relate the visit of Queen Victoria to Ireland in 1900. Queen Victoria’s entourage travelled along the Strawberry Beds on its way to Lutttrellstown Castle where she was hosted. Mary described the Queen as ‘a small frail woman’ sitting in her horse-drawn carriage as she passed by. This was Queen Victoria’s fourth visit to Ireland, a country she was very fond of. Her first visit to the country was in 1849 when she was named ‘The Famine Queen’. She was in her eightieth year in 1900 so the description of being frail and small was probably very accurate.

Mrs. Byrne reared Peter Melia and his brother Patrick Melia. The two boys went to the Lower Road National School in the year of 1924. The cottage in which she lived (see cover) is one of the few remaining classical cottages that were characteristic of the Strawberry Beds. From the seventies onwards more and more similar cottages were demolished by families moving onto the Beds with a desire to live at the top of the hills. Mrs. Byrne died at home and she passed the cottage on to Peter Melia who in turn died in 1997. Mary Byrne’s cottage was probably built in the early 1800s or perhaps even earlier. Thankfully the cottage is well preserved and being cared for most ably by Ms. Marie Therese Eustace.

Mrs. Carney also contributed to this book with her stories of market gardening and of life on the road at the turn of twentieth century. She described the peelers, as they would ride by on horseback along the road doing their patrols. They were stationed in Chapelizod and would continue on to Lucan and back by the Galway road. Her husband Peadar Carney, who was deceased at the time of the above photograph, used to work for Maxi Arnott in his riding stables in Clonsilla. Peadar Carney rode many races in the Phoenix Park for Maxi Arnott. In his later years he had the ‘bowed legs’ characteristic of retired jockeys.

Mrs. Doyle provided much information on the growing of the strawberries, how they were grown, picked and transported to the city’s market. The Doyle’s always had a pony and trap to ferry their fruit. Not all growers were as well off in this regard, many had to make the trip on foot.

This rural community of the Strawberry Beds, while not unique, was still special and of significance because of the agricultural, industrial, and social contribution it made to the fabric of Dublin’s history. Many who travelled there on day trips or ultimately to live were always aware of the unique beauty of the Liffey Valley. The Strawberry Beds, home to the market gardeners, the ‘pinks’, and the strawberries and cream on cabbage leaves, coupled with a pleasant meander along the riverbank will always be remembered fondly.

The ‘Tea house’ or ‘Coffee house’ on Lucan Bridge at the start of the twentieth century. This house served the workers of Hills mills. Note the boy on the right is in bare feet.
(Courtesy Mrs. Mary Shackleton).

FOREWORD

In past times place names, townlands, and local names were used extensively to describe or localise an area. A crossroads would have a name to identify it, a field might be known by a family name, a road or lane might be known by its descriptive condition. Farmers would name their fields to identify them when discussing some relevant matter. Today all areas are mapped on Google earth, so one can view the Strawberry Beds from the other side of the world. Indeed, so accurate is the mapping that a car in a driveway can be visualised. Nowadays one has postcodes, extensive mapping, GPS locating and road numbering. People are more mobile now, few walk the roads, so historical place names are becoming redundant. When I asked my brother Denis to carry out the initial proof reading of this book, he confessed that he didn’t know the location of some of the place names and he had grown up in the Strawberry Beds. Because this local knowledge can disappear so rapidly, I have introduced a glossary at the start of the book so readers can become aware of the area, cottage, lane, that they read about.

Airfield: the original name for Summerton / Somerton, home of the Brooke and Laidlaw families.

Anna Liffey (mill): also previously known as ‘Devil’s Mill’, lying at the bottom of Tinkers Hill opposite the Luttrellstown Estate.

Astagob (or Castagob): a townland covering the Strawberry Beds divided into two electoral divisions - Clonsilla and Castleknock.

Broomfield: a townland and walled residence bordering the River Liffey lying just east of Anna Liffey mill.

Cannons Lane: a lane joining Porterstown Road with Carpenterstown Road. This may have been known originally as Keenans Lane.

Castleknock: a barony, townland and electoral division, originally belonging to the Tyrell family with a castle therein.

Diswellstown: a townland and (house) residence, the original home of the Dueswell family, a Norman family.

Farmleigh (Farmley): a residence of the Guinness family on the Tower Road bordering the Phoenix Park.

Ferry: a boat crossing the river with a boom linking the Strawberry Beds to Mill Lane, Palmerstown.

Glen: footpath joining the Lower Road to Sandpits. Forms the western boundary of Knockmaroon Estate. Runs alongside a stream, a townland boundary.

Glenmaroon: residence for The Sisters of Charity at the entrance to the Phoenix Park at Knockmaroon Gate. (Hill) road running down into Chapelizod.

Grand Lodge: gate lodge and main entrance to Luttrellstown Castle from the Lower Road.

Knockmaroon: residence of the Guinness family. (Hill) at the end of the Lower Road up to the Phoenix Park gate.

Lower Road: roadway from Lucan to Knockmaroon Hill along the riverbank. Given name to distinguish it from the Dublin to Galway road.

Mardyke: residence and site of an old mill at Palmerstown Weir. Start of towpath running from Palmerstown Weir to Chapelizod along the riverbank.

Pickering Forest: large house and farm in Celbridge, once owned by the Brooke family.

Rag Well: site of an old pump serving cottages at the Sandpits. Overlooks the Glen. Originally the site of a holy well with a whitethorn bush. Locals would tie small rags to the bush and pray.

Rugged Lane: a lane running up from the Lower Road to Porterstown Road. Also forms the eastern boundary of Luttrellstown Estate.

Sandpits: row of cottages belonging to Knockmaroon Estate at the junction of College Road, Capenterstown Road and Porterstown Road. Also known as Sand Holes where sand was extracted.

Somerton: (lane, house): a roadway running from the Strawberry Beds to Porterstown road. Residence of the Laidlaw family.

Tinker’s Hill: a roadway opposite Shackleton’s Mill (Anna Liffey) going from the Lower Road to Porterstown Road on the western edge of Luttrelstown Estate. Also known as St Josephs Hill.

Woolly Corner: crossroad at Somerton Lane and Porterstown Road, site of sheep dealing or sheep stealing in past times. (folklore)

Woodlands: first cottage after the Grand Lodge travelling from Lucan. It lies east of Luttrelstown Estate. A Mass path runs from this cottage up onto the Rugged Lane.

Woodland cottage as it is today.
This cottage is the starting point of the Strawberry Beds.

Chapter 1

GEOLOGY OF THE STRAWBERRY BEDS

The Liffey Valley was formed following the last ice age in a process known as ‘River Rejuvenation’. The last Ice Age occurred around 20,000 years ago. The process is as follows: the weight of the ice, which is present for thousands of years initially, depresses the landscape. As the earth’s temperature increases and the glaciers retreat, the land rises up with the weight removed. This process is known as ‘Isostasy’. Rivers form beneath the melting glaciers forcing a path to the sea. Later on, the River Liffey, which rises in the Dublin Mountains, would down-cut into the rising landscape forming a V shaped channel from Leixlip to Island Bridge on its way to the sea. Similar erosions occurred in the Dodder and Tolka regions. As the river travels to the sea it forms flood plains and it is here that rich fertile soil is deposited both from the receding glaciers and the active river. During periods of flood the river would simply flow out to cover tracts of land and recede when levels dropped, leaving small particles of soil in their wake. Deposits of stone and gravel were also made at deeper levels and were a source of building material when quarried at a later date. The soil along the River Liffey and valley is deep and tremendously fertile due to the many, many years of mineral deposits and decomposition of organic material, which makes it perfectly suitable for agriculture.

Starting in St. Catherine’s, west of Lucan, the high banks on either side of the river are evidence of this ‘Isostacy’. The steep bank on the northern side of the river continues to Woodlands Cottage - the eastern edge of Luttrellstown Estate - where the first flood plain starts. The Strawberry Beds is a descriptive local name, noted firstly on maps of 1836. The name predates this, however, and was probably used in the 1700s. The Strawberry Beds really starts at the first flood plain (Woodlands Cottage) and continues along the Lower Road to finish at Knockmaroon Hill. The total extent of the Strawberry Beds is about three miles.

The slopes, which were cultivated, are south facing, giving it a distinct ecology. Protected from severe climate changes due to their depth, closeness to the river, and the shading afforded by the large woodlands, the land enjoyed mild winters and warm temperatures in summer. This lengthened the growing season on the Strawberry Beds compared to other competitive regions. The Liffey Valley is considered to be the second warmest in Ireland - the first being in Cork on the River Lee.

The River Liffey flows on a limestone bed, which underlies the soil of Kildare and Dublin. Because of this the river forms shallows and rapids along its way to the sea. Unfortunately this prohibits navigation along the river unlike the Barrow or Shannon. While the great benefits of the river are evident, it also posed a barrier, which had to be negotiated by anyone who wished to navigate in or out of the Strawberry Beds. This barrier would have a much greater influence in winter than in summer with the heavier water flow. While floods could be expected in wintertime, they often surprised the Strawberry Beds inhabitants in summer.

So in essence the Strawberry Beds is blessed with rich soil, ample water, south-facing orientation, good farmers and market gardeners. Above all it is its closeness to the city of Dublin with its vegetable and flower markets at six miles distance, that brought a source of income to build and support the community.

Chapter 2

EARLY INHABITANTS

Habitation of nomadic people always took place along a river or stream ways. This provided a food and water source, both being vital for survival. Ireland has been inhabited for nine thousand years or more, and for the first 2000 years the people were nomadic. During the last Ice Age, 20,000 years ago, the sea levels were much lower than they are today so land bridges existed between Ireland and England and the mainland of Europe. As the ice receded, Ireland became heavily forested, abundant in wildlife, with ample water in the rivers and streams, and so became attractive to migrating peoples from the mainland of Europe. This was the Mesolithic period of man where stone and flint – the best deposits were to be found in Antrim - were the working tools.

The benefit of rich alluvial soil for cultivation on the banks of rivers encouraged the people to move from a nomadic life to a settled agricultural lifestyle. Settlements grew along the rivers with concentrations at fording points. Dome-shaped huts were constructed, food grown, food gathered and animals kept. Rivers might also have religious or cultural significance for the people. The River Boyne, with the passage tombs of Newgrange, Dowth and Knowth, is one such river. The tombs were built by Stone Age people six thousand years ago and were constructed prior to the arrival of the Celts. The River Liffey did not have the same religious or cultural significance as that of the Boyne. However, it is a large river, was a rich source of food and bracketed by fertile lands, all that an evolving society would require for their growth and survival.

The inhabitants evolved through the centuries from nomadic hunter-gatherers to pastoralists and formed settlements with a social order. This settlement of the peoples would have cultural, social and organisational significance throughout the land. By the year 400 AD, seven thousand years after the first arrival of man on the island, Ireland became a land of learning and education with the Christian belief at its core. Abbeys were built along riverbanks, such as Clonmacnoise, and these abbeys became the literary centre for all of Europe. It was in these educational establishments that the Bible would be translated into the Gaelic language and the day-today living of the Irish people would be chronicled. Saints and scholars would leave the island to spread their teaching on the mainland of Europe. It is evident that contact between Ireland and the Continent was prolific throughout the ages. The monks that lived in the abbeys had a great awareness of life in Europe and elsewhere.

The year 841 AD saw the first Viking incursion into Ireland. These seafarers from the Norwegian lands sailed all along the coastline of Europe, from the Mediterranean regions to all the islands that lie to the west. In 964 AD they were established in ‘Dubh Linn’ or Dublin, having sailed up the river to initially plunder and later form a trading port. Dublin was to become the centre of trading for the Vikings by the year 1000 AD because of its central location with respect to their sailing routes. This would ensure that Dublin was exposed to many different cultures and peoples from distant places. Indeed Dublin was the capital slave-trading port at this time. Slaves would be sought locally, or acquired in other lands, and sold on the market in Dublin. As the Strawberry Beds is only six miles from the river mouth it is certain that the Viking people moved up along the river. The name Leixlip derives from the Viking words Lax Haup, which translates as salmon leap, or Leim an Bhradain in Irish. The Vikings fought the Battle of Confey, near Leixlip, against the native Irish in 917 AD. The Strawberry Beds did suffer Viking influence whatever its nature.

The earliest documented signs of inhabitants in the Strawberry Beds come from bones unearthed in Somerton in the early 1970s. Fields were being tilled in the moat field above the Huntsman House (Scully’s), when the plough unearthed bones of women and children who had suffered a violent death. There were many skull fractures amongst the slain and over a hundred bodies were excavated. There were no bones of men in the remains. Investigation of the discovery by the National Museum suggested that the find might have been an encampment or village settlement that would have overlooked the river from the high ground. Whether this was a temporary settlement for a nomadic tribe or a settled people is not known. The National Museum dated the bodies to the year 1000 AD or perhaps the Battle of Clontarf (1014). The women and children could have been massacred while the men were away fighting but that they died a violent death is certain. The camp might also have been raided to procure slaves with the men being taken and the women and children slaughtered. Their remains were subsequently interred in Mulhuddart Cemetery following the archeological investigation.

The Normans invaded Ireland soon after, in 1100 AD, and took lands beside the main cities and ports of the time. Cities such as Waterford, Cork, Dublin and Limerick were the first areas to be invaded and the Norman power would spread out into the hinterland from these bases. King John, who came to Ireland in 1204, granted the lands at Luttrellstown to the Lutteral family. The Porter and Dueswell families are Norman in origin, and so the further evolution of the Strawberry Beds with these new settlers continued. These new conquerors would introduce a feudal system of government with land acquisition and ownership at the heart of its power. These landlords would endure for the next 800 years with their control of the land and hence the people.

Dedication

Acknowledgements

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

FOREWORD

Chapter 1

GEOLOGY OF THE STRAWBERRY BEDS

Chapter 2

EARLY INHABITANTS