1714 – St. Luke’s Church, The Coombe, Dublin

Architect: Thomas Burgh

1771

1770

In 1708, an act of parliament was passed which divided the parish of St. Nicholas Without and giving part of it the denomination of St. Luke’s. A Glebe House was erected on The Coombe for the vicar, who was nominated by the Chapter of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and the church of St. Luke erected nearby, probably designed by Thomas Burgh then Surveyor General. Described in 1837, “The church, erected in 1708, when the parish, which had been a part of that of St. Nicholas, was formed, is approached by an avenue of trees from the Coombe, and. is a plain structure entered by a large doorway between rusticated columns: it was re-rooted in 1835 by a grant of £1029. 13. 6. from the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.”

“This is a large stone building without any external ornament, and dark and gloomy in the interior. It is erected on rising ground at the rere of the houses on the north side of New Market, and has a passage leading to it from Skinners Alley, but its principal entrance is at the head of an avenue leading from the Coombe and planted on both sides with rows of elm trees. It was erected in the early part of the last century and has the appearance of being a durable building.” ‘The New Picture of Dublin: Or, Stranger’s Guide Through the Irish Metropolis’, published in 1831.

The church was closed in 1975. It was burned by an arsonist in 1986. After many years in the ownership of Dublin City Council it has been preserved and redeveloped.