The story of the Blue-Coat Hospital
The Blue-Coat Hospital This useful and ornamental building is situated in Blackhall-str...
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The Blue-Coat Hospital This useful and ornamental building is situated in Blackhall-str...
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The Blue-Coat Hospital**
bluecoat.gif (23185 bytes)This useful and ornamental building is situated in Blackhall-street, and consists of a centre and two wings. The front of the centre is enriched by Ionic columns supporting a pediment. This part of the building contains apartments for the principal officers, a committee-room, record-room, and board-room.
The north wing is the chapel, 65 feet by 32, which is extremely handsome, and over the communion-table is a good painting of the Resurrection, by Waldron.
The south wing contains a spacious school-room, of the same dimensions as the chapel, in which were formerly an emblematic picture of the delivery of the charter, and portraits of King William III. Queen Mary, Queen Anne, George II. and Queen Caroline, General Ginckle, Dean Drelincourt, &c.
The dining-hall is spacious and commodious, and the dormitories sufficiently extensive and well ventilated. They contain beds for 120 boys, who are well fed, clothed, acted, and educated, and at a suitable age apprenticed. The corporation of Merchants support a mathematical school in the Hospital, in which boys intended for the sea service are instructed in navigation.
Of the 120 boys in the Hospital, 58 are appointed by the Corporation, 50 by Governors of Erasmus Smith’s schools, 10 by the Bishop of Meath, and 2 by the Minister of St. Werburgh’s parish. Above £21,000 have been expended on this building; the annual income is about £4,000 per annum.
This excellent establishment was founded by the Corporation of Dublin in 1670, and by the original plan was designed for the reception of aged and inform reduced citizens of Dublin and their children, and also for the education of the latter. But being unable to accomplish this object of extensive benevolence, they were obliged tocontract their plan, and confine the charity to the sons and grandsons of decayed citizens. King Charles II. granted a charter to the Corporation to this effect, empowering them to purchase lands, and to make laws and statutes for the government of the establishment.
The original structure was situated in Queen-street, being 170 feet in length, by 300 feet in depth. The parliament frequently sat in this house. Becoming decayed, it was determined to rebuild it on its present site at a small distance from the former, and the first stone was laid on the 16th of June, 1773, by Earl Harcourt, Lord Lieutenant.
(Dublin Penny Journal, Vol. IV, No. 166. September 5, 1835.)