College Street, Dublin

A late 1990s archeological excavation discovered evidence that archaeological remains, some ecclesiastical, might be found with further exploration. The work determined that land, lying on a buried gravel bank, had been reclaimed in the 17th century when the River Steine, that previously flowed through Fleet Street towards Westmoreland Street, had affected the street and was flooded by the River Liffey before being piped underground.[5]

College Street provides an impressive view of the eastern portico of the Bank of Ireland building, originally the entrance to the Irish House of Lords with its six tall Corinthian pillars surmounted by statues of Fortitude, Justice, and Liberty.[4][6]

On 14 August 1849, College Street and all the space in front of the bank's eastern portico brimmed with thousand of people awaiting the arrival of Queen Victoria, sometimes dubbed the Famine Queen,[7] on her first visit to Ireland. Even the lofty parapet of the bank, along with its three statues where groups had reached, observed the event, an impressive sight for those in the street below.[4]

In the late 1700s, the Bank of Ireland were seeking new premises, and considered the old Customs House but they found a more suitable site. This was a triangular shape of the Wide Streets Commissioners proposed development for what we know as Westmoreland Street, D'Olier Street, both created in 1800, and College Street. The College Street frontage would have been 320 feet long. The bank's proposal to build there was approved in July 1799. Before the site was cleared, the old Irish House of Lords became available so the bank requested they be allowed to vacate their commitment to the College Street site on the basis that the old parliament house was immediately available, and it would be several years before the College, Westmoreland, D'Olier Streets site would be completed and their building erected. This was allowed though, compensation was demanded of the bank.[8]

The Royal Irish Institution, an organisation promoting fine arts, was based at No.5 College Street. The building was constructed by Frederick Darley in 1829. It was demolished in 1866 and replaced with the Provincial Bank of Ireland, constructed by William George Murray. The building was redeveloped into the Westin Hotel in 1998, which extends onto Westmoreland Street. This involved demolishing four other buildings along College Street.[1][9] Conservationists attempted to block this redevelopment and preserve the buildings; in the event, the later Victorian shop facades were preserved.[10]

Thomas Moore statue, circa 1910, with ice cream carts and Trinity College railing on right

The Crampton Memorial was constructed in 1862 on a site in the centre of the eastern (Pearse Street) end of College Street. It partially collapsed in 1959 and was subsequently demolished.[1] There is now a sculpture at the eastern end, named "Steyne" after an Old Norse word meaning "stone". It was created by Cliodhna Cussen and installed in 1986.[1] At the western end there is a statue of composer Thomas Moore, erected in 1857 by Christopher Moore.[10]

The street had pairs of French art deco street lanterns on top of an ornate cement lamppost, along with several other Dublin streets including O'Connell Street, O'Connell Bridge and College Green. They were installed by the Dublin Corporation between 1936–1939, changing from earlier cast-iron standards.[11] As of July 2020, there was only one pair remaining in College Street, outside Doyle's pub.[12] It has been demolished since October 2021.[13]

2016 view facing east before the Luas line construction

When the Luas Cross City Line was extended in 2017, including a new Trinity Luas stop,[14] up to 30% of buses were removed from the usual route along College Street, including a stop on the Trinity College side. Complaints were aired in the Dáil Éireann about the congestion and overcrowding of buses because of the work, saying the plans were not thought out well.[15]

• Bennett, Douglas (2005). The Encyclopaedia of Dublin. Gill & Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-717-13684-1.
• Casey, Christine (2005). Dublin: The City Within the Grand and Royal Canals and the Circular Road with the Phoenix Park. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-30010-923-8.

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