Hi Alison,
I have not posted on here[Rootschat]for many years.
So bear with me
I have been compiling a history of Ringsend & Irishtown for some years.
The attached pic,shows the Dodder river,with the Hibernian Glass works building & chimney,
,on the right side of what we
[locals]
call the point.The Liffey frontage of the works,was formerly called Fishermans wharf,now York Road[although a block of apartments now built,retain that name.
Not to be confused with the Point depot,former rail depot#[facing in photo] on the North wall quayside..
[now the O2 arena#]
The other 'Ringsend bottle works' chimney, with some structures extant,is still along Fitzwilliam qy.at the junction with London-bridge Road.[which I have an old pic of also]
I was born beside the leadworks on Fitzwilliam str,but we moved when I was young.
My maternal Gt.grandfather[Thomas Dunne,died 1907, was a bottle blower in a couple of the works,inc' the Hibernian.He was also an organiser of the fore runner of trade unions known as 'combinations'.In my research on this,I gathered alot of complementary local info,so if interested in the local lore,regarding the men employed to go around waking the glass blowers for work[i.e. rapping on windows each morning]let me know.
[combinations,of workers,and trades,not affiliated to any other union,including bottle blowers &c]
Later,after it was taken over[post 1893?] by John Burke,the whiskey distiller of E & J Burke, established Dublin ,in 1849, who were the single importer & bottler [for 80 years]of Arthur Guinness products to the USA,based in N.Y. between 1874-1953..and as they bottled all the G- products in N.Y....I reckon they may have acquired, your John Little' Hibernian bottle plant in order to cut out any 'middle man'..The origins of the side street row of tenement houses,off Thorncastle street,called Whiskey Row*.stem from the history of J.Burke'whiskey distiller, acquiring ownership of the Hibernian works.The Hibernian name, does not end there,nor the works,for it became a meat processing plant '*The Irish Products Co.-Hibernian Works-'Fat melters,extractors & refiners[of edible and technical fats, cooked tripe,animal feeds &c'.I have not time now[tis 4 a.m.],nor the know how to add other snippets in photographic history to this post,but have other snippets to add,later if wanted...Worth mentioning,that once Dun Laoghaire[Dunleary]became the main point of embarkation for Britain,and elsewhere,Ringsend which had been the main port in use for such, became very industrialised,with salt works,leadworks,a half dozen plate-bottle glass works etc etc.I worked in the Irish G.B.works in the 1980s,on the 'hot end' as it was known,drawing up the molten red glowing hot, glass waste,which was traditionally known as 'bosh',drawn up, from a gathering pool,of bubbling hot water, at the end of the production line,using a 10' long drawbar,into a large barrow,the 'shovels' were akin to those once used by council workers to hoke out the water drains-shores with,but with much longer handles....thirsty work !The local sand was ideal for all glassmaking from what we call the 'shellybanks'.
* my maternal grandfather worked in the latter Hibernian works,known locally as the 'products'till he died ['67]as did his daughter, my late aunt .My mat.3xgt.grandparents lived on Whiskey Row,and within the surrounding parish of St.Patrick.and were trawler[50 tonne ketch-smacks] owners/fishermen,the first of several generations of ours in the parish,on both sides.I do hope this helps broaden the scope a little.or fills out the 'picture'.will post more detail/images,if sought,
regards T.
