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HISTORY OF NUMBER 10, DUBLIN
There is little record of the history of Number 10 in the nineteenth century, although it is referenced in Henry Shaw’s Dublin Pictorial Guide and Directory of 1850, showing Lower Ormond Quay superficially much as it appears today with most of the buildings in commercial use, including a printer, a scrivener, a paper maker, and an oilcloth factory. During the early twentieth century, Number 10 fell into a state of severe disrepair until it was rescued by the Kenyon family who ran an antiques business from the property.
The structural restoration of the house represented a huge challenge. The top two storeys had caved in and needed to be rebuilt. Originally the staircase would have risen to the roof where a pitched skylight let light into the stairwell; this was closed over, a renovation at the expense of natural light but with the welcome addition of bathrooms, which were not part of an eighteenth century home.A further source of light was lost to practical considerations as a lift was put in along the north-facing wall of the house.
The building remained as an antique showrooms until 1998 when the current owner, John Lynch, walked into the showrooms to look at a piece of furniture and walked out, more or less, with the house in his pocket.
The conversion of any of Dublin’s Georgian houses to modern usage is a matter of balancing historical integrity with practicality and expense, and Lynch realised from the outset that Number 10 would have to earn its keep.
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