A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit under.
Greek proverb
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Our History
We have a remarkably rich and detailed history. It's something that we think about and see everytime we are within the garden's Victorian walls. For those of you who have never visited us, you really should to explore and learn more. Even if gardening isn't your thing, you may be interested to walk through the garden and consider it's two-hundred plus years' history. We like to think of the garden as being an example of 'living history'. On this page, we provide a very brief overview of the relevant history that we bear witness to everyday.
Early records - the 1600s
The garden as we know it today was part of Santry Court House and Demesne. The first official recording of Santry Court was in the Civil Survey of County Dublin, 1654-1656. In that record, photographed below, there is mention of a house, a garden and two orchards.
"There is upon the premises a Dwelling house of stone wth. a barne & an old stable, Thacht, ye walls of a house & a garden & 2 orchards, Also a small slated house wth. six thatcht Cabbins valued by ye Jury at 300li Also ye parish Church of Santry. " (1)
At that time the demesne belonged to Sir. James Barry (1603-1672), who was appointed as the first Lord Santry in 1661 by King Charles II. James' eldest son, Richard, became the second Lord Santry, and Richard's fourth eldest son, Henry, became the third Lord Santry. It was this third Lord Santry, Henry Barry, who built a red brick and stone Queen Anne style mansion in the grounds of the one-hundred and forty acre Santry Demesne estate in 1703 (pictures of this house can be viewed in the slideshow below). The fourth Lord Santry, another Henry Barry, died in 1751 upon which the peerage/title of 'Lord Santry' ended. This Henry Barry left his Santry estate to his uncle, Sir. Compton Domville of Templeogue. The Domvilles were descendants of William the Conqueror. The house and demesne remained within the Domville family for almost two-hundred years (1751 - 1935).
Records of lands owned by Sir. James Barry, in the Parish of Santrye in the Barony of Coolock 1654-1656, documented in The Civil Survey undertaken by the British Parliament. Note: the value of the cabbins was 300li. li is an abbreviation of libræ (pounds), a Latin term used in historical accounting records for the pound unit of currency.
The 1800s - "gardens and pleasure-grounds"
Descriptions exist of what the house and demesne were like during the time of the Domvilles. In 1837, Samuel Lewis in his Topographical Dictionary of Ireland described a "stately mansion of brick" (2), north of which were "walled fruit gardens, extensive greenhouses and the farmyard" (3). He made a complimentary observation of the demense at that time
"... the demesne comprising more than 140 acres, is tastefully laid out in gardens and pleasure-grounds, richly embellished with timber, and commanding some beautiful scenery and some extensive mountain and sea views." (Lewis, 1837:544)
Twenty years after Lewis' observations, Sir Charles Compton William Domville, "planned every detail of the transformation of Santry Court and gardens" in 1857 (4). Sadly, these lovely observations would not last.
Decline and War Times
By the time Sir Compton Mead Domville (1884-1935) inherited Santry Court, the estate was already in decline and the decline continued - unsurprisingly, given he spent most of his time in London. The estate then became vacant. The final Domville heir, Sir Hugo Compton Domville Poë, did not live on the estate. In 1939, Grangegorman Mental Hospital Board bought Santry Court from the Domville family for £17,000.
In the years that followed, the house then fell into disrepair and came under possession of the Irish State. Timothy William Feres (6) noted that the estate was used as an army depot for a while during World War II and that part of the gardens were used as a firing range. A photograph of the Irish Army sitting on the steps of Santry Court House can be seen on the left, and in the slideshow below. We have this photograph in the garden today. The house was damaged by fire on 24th October 1947. The Santry Demesne farm closed in 1948 (7) and the remains of the house and farm buildings were demolished in April, 1959.
Renewal - the beginning of Santry Community Garden
The Victorian walled garden that served Santry Court House in it's day, staffed by workers on the estate, is now Santry Community Garden. In 2010, when Fingal County Council agreed to permit volunteers to establish a community garden within the original walls of the old Victorian garden, at which point it was a derelict site, the volunteers were committed to adhering to the original Victorian garden plans and layout.
As can be seen from the Google Earth image on the left, and in the slideshow below, the garden is clearly divided into three sections: (i) the north plot is our Kitchen Garden, (ii) the middle plot is our Heritage Orchard, and (iii) the larger south plot is the Ornamental/Front Garden with a pond. These plots match the plot lines on the 1812 Estate Map which can also be seen in the slideshow below (Slide 1).
Thanks to those founding volunteers - some of whom are still members of the garden today - and their commitment and hard work, we now have an amazing, vibrant and award-winning Community Garden! As Community Gardens go, we like to think we're best in class!
Come visit us, join as a member, and we'll show you why!
And don't forget to browse our slideshow below.
Acknowledgements
This is a very, very brief overview of the rich and detailed history of our wonderful garden. A number of sources were used and are worth mentioning. The Civil Survey of County Dublin, undertaken in the 1650s is a very interesting source, and is available online having been prepared for publishing by R.C. Simington of the Irish Manuscripts Commission in 1945. Samuel Lewis' 1837 Topographical Dictionary of Ireland is a very important pre-Famine Irish historical record, especially for those intersted in local history and geneology. Santry is noted on page 544 of Volume 2. The online version, cited and hyperlinked in the list below, combines all three volumes. For an easy and quick search of this huge document, go to page 1290 (of 1523) to see page 544 of Lewis' original Vol. 2. where details about Santry are documented. Research previously undertaken by the Santry Guild of the Irish Countrywomen's Association was useful and informative. In 2007, their local historical research was published in a book entitled From Acorns to Oaks - Santry's Story. It is a rich and illustrated resource documenting local history and the development of Santry over the years. We are grateful for the The Irish Countrywomen's Association, they have been long-standing supporters of the Community Garden. Timothy William Ferres published a very interesting blogpost in May 2025 covering Santry Court and the Domville family history. This is a very interesting read and well worth checking out - click on the link below in source 5.
Sources:
(1) Simington, R.C., (1945). The Civil Survey A.D. 1654-1656. Vol. VII. County of Dublin. Irish Manuscripts Commission. Dublin: The Stationery Office. (p. 198). Available online
(2) Lewis, S. (1937). Topographical Dictionary of Ireland. 1st Ed. Vol. 2. p 544. Available online Reproduced by Archive CD Books Ireland Ltd.
(3) Santry Guild, Irish Countrywomen's Association. (2007) From Acorns to Oaks - Santry's Story. Published by The Heritage Council. p. 59.
(4) Santry Guild, Irish Countrywomen's Association. (2007) From Acorns to Oaks - Santry's Story. Published by The Heritage Council. p. 31.
(5) Irish Statute Book. State Proerty Act, 1954. Second Schedule, Instruments Validated. Section 26 (1). 4 Online record accessed 07.01.2026
(6) Blogpost. Timothy William Ferres, Lord Belmont in Northern Ireland - Santry Court. Published 28/05/2025. Accessed 28/12/2025
(7) Santry Guild, Irish Countrywomen's Association. (2007) From Acorns to Oaks - Santry's Story. Published by The Heritage Council. p. 45
Reinstating and Preserving Our History
We are committed to preserving, maintaining, caring for, and future-proofing our historical legacy. Our garden dates back to the 1800s, and unfortunately for a time it was a derelict site. It has taken fifteen years of volunteering to grow and develop the garden to what it is today. Our Chairperson, Vince, leads the initiative to have orginal items from the garden reinstated and restored. In January 2026, a good friend of the garden and local historian, Gerry Cooley, helped us acquire an old 'Cardinal Stone' that reportedly dates back to the 1700s. It is believed that this stone, which has the North, South, East, West cardinal points carved into it, was originally placed in the garden. We are currently undertaking some research to determine its exact history. The stone weighs more than sixty kilograms and was kindly brought to the garden by our longstanding and hardworking members, Brian and Timo. Our next project is to clean it up, and try and place it in, or close to its original location. We would also love to have an antique sun dial in the garden. Two sun dials are identifiable on the 1837 map of Santry Demense and we think one would be a lovely addition to the garden. If you know anyone who would like to donate an antique sun dial to the garden, we would love to talk to them about the opportunity. Please email us santrycommunitygarden@gmail.com or talk to us when you're next in the garden. Thank you!
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