Swords, Dublin
| Swords Sord Cholm Cille
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| — Town — | |
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 Swords
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| Coordinates: 53°27′35″N 6°13′05″W / 53.4597°N 6.2181°WCoordinates: 53°27′35″N 6°13′05″W / 53.4597°N 6.2181°W | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Leinster |
| County | Fingal |
| Dáil Éireann | Dublin North |
| Elevation | 3 m (10 ft) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Urban | 40,387 |
| Irish Grid Reference | O184469 |
Swords (from Irish: Sord Cholm Cille) is the county town of Fingal in Ireland. It is about 13 km north of Dublin city centre and is part of its commuter belt.
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[edit] History
The town can trace its origins back to 560, having been founded by Saint Colmcille (521-567).[1] Legend has it that the saint blessed a local well, giving the town its name, Sord, meaning "clear" or "pure". However, An Sord also means "the water source" and could indicate a large communal drinking well that existed in antiquity;[2] the well is located on Church Road off Main Street opposite the pavilions. Sord may also refer to a "sward", an 'expanse of grass'.[3] In 1994, Swords became a county seat after the breakup of the former County Dublin; in 2001, it became the administrative centre for Fingal, upon the completion of the Fingal County Hall.
In June 2006, the R.N.L.I. Ireland officially opened its new All Ireland headquarters at Airside in Swords. The new Irish H.Q. was officially opened by Her Excellency President Mary McAleese. In attendance at this Presidential ceremony was Admiral Sir Jock Slater, R.N., a former British First Sea Lord who was serving as the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the R.N.L.I..
[edit] Geography
[edit] Population
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1813 | — | |
| 1821 | 1,727 | — |
| 1831 | 2,537 | +46.9% |
| 1841 | 1,788 | −29.5% |
| 1851 | 1,294 | −27.6% |
| 1861 | 1,296 | +0.2% |
| 1871 | 1,008 | −22.2% |
| 1881 | 1,088 | +7.9% |
| 1891 | 983 | −9.7% |
| 1901 | 944 | −4.0% |
| 1911 | 907 | −3.9% |
| 1926 | 839 | −7.5% |
| 1936 | 838 | −0.1% |
| 1946 | 703 | −16.1% |
| 1951 | 1,136 | +61.6% |
| 1956 | 1,629 | +43.4% |
| 1961 | 1,816 | +11.5% |
| 1966 | 1,892 | +4.2% |
| 1971 | 4,133 | +118.4% |
| 1981 | 11,138 | +169.5% |
| 1986 | 15,312 | +37.5% |
| 1991 | 17,705 | +15.6% |
| 1996 | 22,314 | +26.0% |
| 2002 | 27,175 | +21.8% |
| 2006 | 37,762 | +39.0% |
| 2011 | 40,387 | +7.0% |
Swords (once a self-contained town outside Dublin's city limits) has developed into one of Dublin's largest commuter towns. The town's population boom began in the 1970s with the construction of the sprawling Rivervalley Estate, Ireland's largest private housing development, ahead of Kilnamanagh Estate in Tallaght North, and continued during the 1990s and 2000s, with many new residents moving to the area due to its proximity to their work at Dublin Airport. Swords is accessed by the R132 and the M1 motorway.
At the 2006 census the town population was 33,998, which makes it the third largest town in the Republic of Ireland and 8th largest on the island of Ireland.
The town is close to Dublin Airport, and is separated from the city by a narrow green belt around the airport.
[edit] Development
Since the mid 1990s Swords has seen improvements in shop fronts, public buildings, footpaths and the restoration of Swords Castle.
The 2011 Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) Survey scored Swords the 2nd cleanest town in Ireland in their independently assessed nationwide survey of all towns with a population of 6,000 and over.[4]
[edit] Housing
Swords is a socio-economically mixed area with the local housing stock being made up of private and local authority housing.
In 1999 the Seatown Villas area of Swords celebrated 50 years in existence, making it the oldest local authority housing estate in Dublin outside of the city limits.[citation needed] In 2005, Fingal County Council opened 225 council housing units in the Applewood development in Swords. This is the first such public-private housing development to take place in Fingal where private development is inter-mixed with local authority housing. This successful pilot scheme has been replicated in the south of the town in the Boroimhe Estate and also in the Mulhuddart area.
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[edit] Transport
The main bus routes to the city centre from (or via) Swords are the 41/B/C/N, 33 (all via Santry) and 43 (via Coolock). The Swords Express[5] and Dublin Bus 142 and 41X routes provide fast access to the city via the Dublin Port Tunnel. Buses 102 and 33B travel from Dublin Airport via Swords to Portmarnock and from Swords to Balbriggan respectively. The future Metro North line will run from Swords to St Stephen's Green via Dublin Airport, Ballymun, Dublin City University, Griffith Avenue, Lower Drumcondra Road, the Mater Hospital, and O'Connell Street.
[edit] Amenities
[edit] Attractions
The award winning Fingal County Hall by Bucholz McEvoy architects dominates the northern end of Main Street. Swords Castle is undergoing a significant redevelopment and is intended to become a centre of leisure and a tourist attraction. The body of Brian Boru was said to have been brought there after the Battle of Clontarf, though recent evidence would suggest that the destination was Swords Abbey, which lies slightly to the west of the Main Street.
[edit] "Out-of-town" shopping area
Swords has a wide range of shops, banks, pubs and other businesses, including a large modern shopping centre, the Pavilions Centre, off the R132, the recent extension of which has a multi-screen cinema.
[edit] Skate park
In mid 2006, the local authority built a skatepark and adjoining basketball courts/football court in Swords, located in Balheary Park. The park contains a bowl, a vertwall, a spine, some quarterpipes, and a section of boxes in the middle of the park.
[edit] Golf
There are several golf courses close to the town, namely Swords Open Golf Course, Forest Little Golf Club, Roganstown Golf and Country Club and Balheary Par 3 Golf Course. There are also several Driving Ranges in the area with the Drynam Golf Centre being the first Driving Range in the country with automated tees . Also, the Grange Driving range is rated as a 5 star Driving Range
[edit] GAA
There are three GAA clubs located in Swords - Fingallians, St Colmcilles and St Finians.
[edit] Fingal Boxing Academy
Fingal Boxing Academy is affiliated with the Irish Amateur Boxing Association, was the first boxing club in Ireland to train female boxers and has trained several national champions. The club is located in Rivervalley, Swords, for further details see their website at: http://4y9y.zapd.co/
[edit] Swords Boxing Club
Swords Boxing Club is located off Main Street. The club was established over 50 years ago and hosts many tournaments.
[edit] Economy
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This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2011) |
Ingersoll Rand has its corporate headquarters in the Airside Business Park in Swords.[6] CityJet has its headquarters in the Swords Business Campus.[7] Air Contractors has its head office in The Plaza in Swords.[8][9]
Swords is the home to international chemical producers and pharmaceutical giants Opec and Bristol Myers Squibb, and also to a large retail and business park called Airside Retail and Business Park, on the southern fringe of the town, hosting many employers, including the European Headquarters of Kellogg's. East of the town, running parallel to Swords bypass, lies the large Swords Business Park. The Hertz Corporation have a Shared Services Centre in Swords Business Park.
[edit] Education
The district is served by a number of schools, including seven national schools: Holy Family, Saint Cronan's, Saint Colmcille's, Gaelscoil Scoil an Duinninigh, Gaelscoil Bhrian Boroimhe, an Educate Together school and a Church of Ireland "The Old Borough" school. There are also four secondary schools in the town: Loreto College, an all-girls school, Coláiste Choilm, an all-boys school, Fingal Community College, and Saint Finian's Community College.
There is also a Youthreach facility, a FÁS training centre, and the Fingal Adult Literacy and Education Centre. There is also a Beauty College registered with ITEC & CIBTAC called Lenagh's College. Swords Museum, North St Swords. Co Dublin. Swords Historical Society, North St Swords
[edit] Notable residents and references in popular culture
- Ed Byrne, comedian, is from Swords.
- Ronan Keating, singer-songwriter, lived in the Highfields residential development on the suburb's southern side.
- Richard Montgomery hero of the American revolution, born in Swords
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Sidwell, Keith (1995), Reading Medieval Latin, Cambridge University Press, p. 70, ISBN 0-52144747-x
- ^ http://swordsdublin.net/_dublin_history.html
- ^ Hickey, Raymond, 2005: Dublin English: evolution and change
- ^ http://www.ibal.ie/press_releases/2012/PressRelease(1).pdf
- ^ Swords Express
- ^ "Contact Us." Ingersoll Rand. Retrieved on 18 January 2011. "Global Headquarters 170/175 Lakeview Drive Airside Business Park Swords, Co. Dublin Ireland."
- ^ "CityJet." Air France. Retrieved on 21 June 2010. "Address: CityJet Ltd. Swords Business Campus Balheary Road Swords, Co. Dublin Ireland"
- ^ "Contact Us." ASL Aviation. Retrieved on 24 February 2011. "Contact ASL Aviation Group Limited The Plaza Swords Co. Dublin Ireland."
- ^ "How to find us." ASL Aviation. Retrieved on 24 February 2011.
