Cemetery: St. Nicholas Within (Union of St Audoen).
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Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives
Dublin Index
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File contributed by: C. Hunt & Mary Bradley
ST. NICHOLAS WITHIN (UNION OF ST AUDOEN).
[From the Rev. R S Maffett, B A, 1903
According to Wright's "Guide to Dublin" (1821), the Church
of St. Nicholas Within, Nicholas-street, was originally
built by Bishop Donat; this building would seem to have been
re-edified in the latter part of the sixteenth century. The
church was re-built again in 1707, and the front of this
edifice was dangerous when WRIGHT describes it. Lewis
(1887) mentions that the church had been taken down, and was
to be re- built, which latter, however, was never done, and
the parish was united to St. Audoen's in 1867. The
first-named author states that the greater part of the
graveyard was obtained by the Coporation when building the
Tholsel, so that what remained was merely a passage to the
vaults which, he adds, contained the bodies of several
persons of high descent, but their names could only be
learned from the parish registers. On my visit, in May,
1900, I had some difficulty in getting in though I had an
appointment for the purpose, owing to the key having been
lost; after a delay, however, the difficulty was overcome by
the padlock being broken. I was told that the Coropration
was not going to do anything at present with respect to the
remains of the church;* all the houses up to it, on the
south side, had, however, already been taken down in
connection with the improvement schemes. What remains of
the front of the church is the lowest story, of cut stone,
having a door at the north side, and a corresponding
aperture, built up, at the south, with one (arched) in the
centre, much larger and also built up. There is a derelict
house (the "Verger's House"), where the schoolmistress of
the Union of St. Audoen's used to live some years back, and
which I went through, adjoining the church to the north, and
it is the strip of ground behind this house that constitutes
the graveyard. After passing through the doorway in the
church front, there is a short passage or walk, and a flight
of steps, the space to the south being earth. The rest of
the site is covered with the flags in the form of a centre
can only be a few feet (perhaps three or four) higher than
the level of the top step. There seemed flat masonry under
the roofing at some parts at least. The wall of the church,
towards the base of which the north side of the roofing
slopes down, shows four round-headed windows, cut stone
forming the arches on the house (which also opens into the
churchyard), is a door to the burial ground. In the wall at
the east end of the roofed space, near its northern
extremity, is the upper part of what I took to be a doorway
– built up – appearing above the slope of the roof, with the
form of an arch above a flat-cut stone, the jambs being also
of cut stone. The ground on the other side of the wall
belongs to Messrs. T HENSHAW & Co. I could see no entrance
to the space below the roofing. The Rev. C T McCREADY, D D,
however, tells me that he once penetrated beneath this
roofing into the vaults, but saw nothing but coffins and
slime and coffin-plates recording names of no one of
interest." The Parochial Registers, he adds, give the names
of all persons buried there after 1670. I am also indebted
to him for kindly referring me to a series of articles in
the "Irish Builder" of 1889, in connection with which, he
informed me, some inscriptions taken by him appeared †.
This series seems of a very valuable character, and is
continued during the year 1890, reproducing the entries of
the parish registers with other matter. These following
inscriptions, with some particulars not given in the latter,
but without stating the age of Edward THORTON. One of the
earlier articles reproduces from the "Gentleman's Magazine,"
a view of the front of the Church of Nicholas Within. This
engraving, to be found on Plate II of the May number of the
Magazine for • I was most civilly shown by Mr. KEOGH (who
has been, I believe, for some half-century in their
employment) the part of the wall inside the shop which, he
said, corresponded with the part I described. Here there is
a recess boarded up in the wall, which is fronted by
shelving; the recess, however, is some distance from the
ground and has a flat stone at the bottom, which he said
once came upon a vault full of fine mould on the premises.
They are still standing (August 1903).
† These inscriptions I could not find in the "Builder."
Picture of: The Earl of Corks Monument in St. Patrick's
Cathedral, Dublin Erected during his lifetime in 1631
1786, opposite page 375, shows that there was then a wall
where the "Verger's House" now stands.
'Projecting from the inside of the north wall of what was
originally the church, to the east of the last window, there
is a tablet of white marble, 13 inches high by 19 in length,
within a frame of grayish stone, now quite sofe, of about 2
inches in width. The inscription, in small letters is
plain; but most of the marble has a grayish incrustation
over it':-
Here Lieth the Body | of Edward TORTON Esq | Who
Departed this | Life Augt ye 21 1762 | aged 69
______
'The only other inscription in this church or graveyard
appears to be that given below, which is on a stone in the
graveyard leaning against another larger one close to the
north wall of the church, a little west of the last window
but one. This larger stone might, however, have carving on
the side resting against the church wall. The first two
words were the only portion of the inscription above the
ground. The stone under "Friend" is apparently broker, but
not so under the first part of this line; if, however, there
is anything more on the memorial, it must be after a larger
intervening space than that between the last two lines
given. The lettering is in good preservation':-
Here lieth the Body of Mr. Thomas | KING who Departed
this life on | the 15th July 1771, aged 39 Years | He
was a Good Christian | And a Sincere Friend.
__________________
'There is a fourth stone, broken at the top, standing out in
the graveyard near the second of the four windows, which
might have an inscription. It is not more than a few inches
above the ground, and I only examined it some six inches
beneath the surface.
___________________
.
Source
Journal of the Association for the Preservation of the
Memorials of the Dead in Ireland Vo. 6. 1904, (FHL #
0258795)