Newgate Prison (Irish: Príosún an Gheata Nua) was a place of detention in Dublin, Ireland. It was initially located at Cornmarket, near Christ Church Cathedral, on the south side of the Liffey and was originally one of the city gates before being moved to a new purpose built prison on Green Street on the North side of the city in 1781. The prison finally closed in 1863 while the building was demolished in 1893. The site today contains Saint Michan's Park while the remains of the prison's boundary walls still form part of the boundary of the park.
Newgate Prison
Front elevation of Green Street building by Robert Pool
Location in Dublin City of later prison
General information
Type
Prison
Location
'Little Green' (St. Michan's Park), Dublin. Formerly located at Cornmarket, Dublin 8
The exact date of construction of the New Gate is uncertain but it is recorded in 1188. From 1485 this city gate, which marked the western boundary, was used as Dublin's main prison. It was 180 feet (55 m) south of another gate, Brown's Castle, which would also become a place of detention known as the Black Dog while the nearby Tholsel was also used as a jail and debtors prison at various times.[1]
18th century relocation
Newgate Prison front and gallows
Between 1773 and 1781, a new prison designed by Thomas Cooley was built to replace the earlier ruined prison. It was relocated to 'Little Green', present-day St. Michan's Park near Smithfield, and officially retained the old name. The new building was badly located and adequate sewerage could not be installed. There were also security concerns as the rear wall of the cells was also the site boundary wall. While there are no reports of successful escapes via this route, it was raised by Inspectors as an obvious design deficiency. All classes of prisoners were mingled together, up to 14 in a single cell. After inspections in the early 19th century some improvements were provided.[2]
19th century
By the 1840s it was used solely for the holding of remand prisoners, both male and female, usually for a period between a few days and three weeks. On conviction and before sentencing the men were transferred to Richmond Bridewell and the women to Grangegorman-lane Prison. When visited by one of the Prison Inspectors in 1843 there were "30 Males, 9 Females and 11 Lunatics" confined there, but this was considerably less than the average of 100 usually kept there. They were accommodated in 62 cells, 4 dark 'solitary cells', 9 day-rooms, a chapel, 4 small rooms used as a hospital and a number of rooms previously used to hold debtors. There was no laundry or kitchen, the food consisting of bread and milk only. It was staffed by a governor, deputy governor, clerk, schoolmaster and ten 'turnkeys'.[3] The prison finally closed in 1863, from which time until its demolition in 1893 it was used as a fruit and vegetable market. The outline of some of the Newgate Prison foundations are still visible at St. Michan's Park.
^Gilbert, John Thomas (1854). A history of the city of Dublin. Vol. 1. J. McGlashan. p. 257. Retrieved 12 June 2010.
^Dalton: A New Picture of Dublin, Dublin, 1835. p. 169
^Inspectors General of Prisons, Ireland (1843). NINTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE POOR LAW COMMISSIONERS, WITH APPENDICES. Vol. 1 of 16 (9 ed.). HM Stationery Office. pp. 14 to 16. Retrieved 11 June 2010.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Newgate Prison, Dublin.
DUBLIN HISTORICAL RECORD, VOL. VIII, No.3 JUNE-AUGUST, 1946 , The little Green ,PART I , By Thos. King Moylan
February 02, 2023
newgate, prison, dublin, newgate, prison, irish, príosún, gheata, place, detention, dublin, ireland, initially, located, cornmarket, near, christ, church, cathedral, south, side, liffey, originally, city, gates, before, being, moved, purpose, built, prison, gr. Newgate Prison Irish Priosun an Gheata Nua was a place of detention in Dublin Ireland It was initially located at Cornmarket near Christ Church Cathedral on the south side of the Liffey and was originally one of the city gates before being moved to a new purpose built prison on Green Street on the North side of the city in 1781 The prison finally closed in 1863 while the building was demolished in 1893 The site today contains Saint Michan s Park while the remains of the prison s boundary walls still form part of the boundary of the park Newgate PrisonFront elevation of Green Street building by Robert PoolLocation in Dublin City of later prisonGeneral informationTypePrisonLocation Little Green St Michan s Park Dublin Formerly located at Cornmarket Dublin 8Coordinates53 20 58 N 6 16 15 W 53 3494 N 6 2709 W 53 3494 6 2709 Coordinates 53 20 58 N 6 16 15 W 53 3494 N 6 2709 W 53 3494 6 2709Construction started1773Completed1783Demolished1893Cost 16 000Technical detailsFloor count3Design and constructionArchitect s Thomas Cooley Contents 1 History 1 1 From city gate to prison 1 2 18th century relocation 1 3 19th century 2 See also 3 References 4 External linksHistory EditFrom city gate to prison Edit The exact date of construction of the New Gate is uncertain but it is recorded in 1188 From 1485 this city gate which marked the western boundary was used as Dublin s main prison It was 180 feet 55 m south of another gate Brown s Castle which would also become a place of detention known as the Black Dog while the nearby Tholsel was also used as a jail and debtors prison at various times 1 18th century relocation Edit Newgate Prison front and gallows Between 1773 and 1781 a new prison designed by Thomas Cooley was built to replace the earlier ruined prison It was relocated to Little Green present day St Michan s Park near Smithfield and officially retained the old name The new building was badly located and adequate sewerage could not be installed There were also security concerns as the rear wall of the cells was also the site boundary wall While there are no reports of successful escapes via this route it was raised by Inspectors as an obvious design deficiency All classes of prisoners were mingled together up to 14 in a single cell After inspections in the early 19th century some improvements were provided 2 19th century Edit By the 1840s it was used solely for the holding of remand prisoners both male and female usually for a period between a few days and three weeks On conviction and before sentencing the men were transferred to Richmond Bridewell and the women to Grangegorman lane Prison When visited by one of the Prison Inspectors in 1843 there were 30 Males 9 Females and 11 Lunatics confined there but this was considerably less than the average of 100 usually kept there They were accommodated in 62 cells 4 dark solitary cells 9 day rooms a chapel 4 small rooms used as a hospital and a number of rooms previously used to hold debtors There was no laundry or kitchen the food consisting of bread and milk only It was staffed by a governor deputy governor clerk schoolmaster and ten turnkeys 3 The prison finally closed in 1863 from which time until its demolition in 1893 it was used as a fruit and vegetable market The outline of some of the Newgate Prison foundations are still visible at St Michan s Park See also EditGreen Street Courthouse Debtors Prison DublinReferences Edit Gilbert John Thomas 1854 A history of the city of Dublin Vol 1 J McGlashan p 257 Retrieved 12 June 2010 Dalton A New Picture of Dublin Dublin 1835 p 169 Inspectors General of Prisons Ireland 1843 NINTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE POOR LAW COMMISSIONERS WITH APPENDICES Vol 1 of 16 9 ed HM Stationery Office pp 14 to 16 Retrieved 11 June 2010 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Newgate Prison Dublin DUBLIN HISTORICAL RECORD VOL VIII No 3 JUNE AUGUST 1946 The little Green PART I By Thos King Moylan Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Newgate Prison Dublin amp oldid 1082737357, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
