placenamesGlasthule
Glas Tuathail
Glasthule’s church and school buildings preserve stories of fundraising, education and adaptation, including a stream hidden beneath the Harold School.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Glas Tuathail · Irish · main form · validated name
- Glasthule · English · main form
Place & story
St Joseph’s and an unbuilt spire
St Joseph’s Church was designed by Pugin and Ashlin and built by James McCormack. Its foundation stone was laid on 30 May 1867 and the church was consecrated on 10 October 1869. A tower and spire proposed by George Coppinger Ashlin around 1882 were never built. Later work by James Purcell Wrenn included confessionals and altar fittings, showing how the church’s interior continued to develop after the main structure was completed. [2]
Remembering George Harold
The Harold Memorial School commemorated George Canon Harold, who had raised money in the United States to reduce the debt on St Joseph’s Church. The school’s own history describes how the community combined the need for classrooms with a memorial to his work. Sisters of Mercy staffed the girls’ school after its construction around the turn of the twentieth century, continuing an educational presence previously based on Ballygihen Avenue. [3]
A stream beneath the school
The Harold School’s account of its refurbishment recalls a practical problem below the classrooms: a stream flowing underneath the building flooded the boiler house during wet weather. The old boiler house was sealed during the renovations. The school also preserves a register dating to 1872. Separate girls’ and boys’ schools later shared the building until amalgamation in 2001, when they became the single Harold School. [3]
The Presentation building’s changing role
The red-brick Presentation building opposite St Joseph’s opened in 1902 as a residence and school for the Presentation Brothers. Writing in the residents’ association newsletter in 2015, Brother Andrew Hickey recalled the closure of its primary school in 1993 and secondary school in 2006. He described a continuing community role: the former science laboratory had become a meeting room used for courses and talks, and the residents’ association held neighbourhood meetings there. [4]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Glasthule. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- St Joseph’s Church, Glasthule: building works · Irish Architectural Archive / Dictionary of Irish Architects
- Our school history · The Harold School
- Presentation Brothers, Glasthule, September 2015 newsletter, page 8 · Brother Andrew Hickey / Sandycove and Glasthule Residents Association
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2011-07-11. How this page was prepared.