Terenure College 150th Anniversary
History of the College
HISTORY OF THE COLLEGE
On the 10th of January 2010, Terenure College will celebrate one hundred and fifty years since its foundation.
“Terenure House” originally belonged to the Barnewall family who came to England with William the Conqueror. One of the family, Hugo, was granted the lands of Terenure, Kimmage and Drimnagh by King John in 1215. Nearly 400 years later, in 1592, Peter Barnewall built a residential castle incorporated in the present College buildings. In 1671 the house had passed into the hands of a Major Deane who converted the castle into a mansion. In 1789, yet another owner, Robert Shaw (the same family of which George Bernard Shaw, the playwright, was a member) again made alterations in the house. The oldest part of the present building remains the same as he rebuilt it.
Terenure College was formally opened on Tuesday, the 10th of January 1860 under the title of “College of Our Blessed Lady of Mount Carmel, Terenure, Roundtown”. Father Michael J. Gilligan, O.Carm., was the first President. In that first year, twenty-one boys attended the College, most of whom came from the city. A small beginning, but these were to be as the grain of mustard seed that would grow and prosper.
The new College rapidly proved a success. With the increasing number of boys seeking admission to Terenure College it soon became evident that the old Terenure House would have to be enlarged. In 1878 an extension was built. This is the portion of the College extending to the old chapel, containing the study-hall (formerly the Concert Hall) and the intermediate and senior dormitories.
And so the College grew and prospered. 1885 saw Terenure College become the first School to
be affiliated to the GAA. In 1894, another addition was made to the College. This is the fine red-brick structure extending to the present Concert Hall. It included a College Chapel, Science Hall, Dormitories and Classrooms.
The intervening years in the life of the College saw the fight for national independence fought and won and Terenure College was ever a safe refuge for those “on the run”. Michael Collins, Dan Breen, Sean Treacy, William Cosgrave and others – all found safety with the College walls.
The thirties came and the war-clouds grew above the European mainland. It was a hard time for the College, with books and equipment and even food in short supply.
The post-war years saw a wonderful increase in the growth and development of Terenure College. The residential areas of the city began to expand outwards and from 1945 onwards suburban estates were developed on all sides of the College. The growth was reflected in the enrolment of the College. In 1930 about one hundred and thirty boys attended Terenure College. In 1950 the figure was around the three hundred mark. In 1960 a decade later, there are over six hundred boys being educated at Terenure College, a hundred per cent increase in ten years. In 1973 the final Boarders left the College leading to an increase of day pupils to the present day enrolment of just under 900 pupils in both the Junior and Senior Schools.
The increase in pupil numbers required the development of further facilities and in 1979 an extension was completed which incorporated new classrooms, Science Laboratories, Technical Graphics and Wood Work Rooms as well as a new College Gymnasium to compliment the Swimming Pool built a few years earlier.
In 2001 the College realised a major Development Plan which culminated in the construction of a new College Wing. This contains three large Seminar Rooms and a purpose built Support Learning Centre. Improvements were made to the CAD, Materials Technology (Woodwork) and Technical Graphics facilities and the Information Technology Department. Most recently we have seen the complete refurbishment and upgrading of the Swimming Pool, a wonderful facility for both the College and local Community.