Lucan, Dublin
Lucan (Irish: Leamhcán) is a town in South Dublin, Ireland on the outskirts of Dublin city, 12km from the city centre. The town lies at the confluence on the River Liffey and the River Griffeen, a tributary of the Liffey. The picturesque old town retains its character, despite hosting ever-expanding areas of housing that are in essence, suburbs of Dublin. These new estates lead east from the town towards the Liffey Valley Shopping Centre and southeast towards Clondalkin. A further expansion south to the Dublin-Cork train line is planned on the lands of Adamstown.
Patrick Sarsfield, the Irish Jacobite was born in Lucan and was granted the title Earl of Lucan by King James II.
Currently on the site of Sarsfield's castle beside the town is the grand Lucan House. It was built around 1770 by Rt. Hon. Agmondisham Vesey, who had married into the Sarsfield family. The circular ground floor dining room is said to have been an inspiration for the Oval Office of The White House. Over the years, the house passed out of the Vesey family and since 1947, has been the residence of the Italian ambassador to Ireland. Also on the grounds of the house is a sulphurous spa, the waters of which attracted people to the town in previous times.
The influence of the Sarsfield and Vesey families on Lucan is still apparent in the locality. For example, the local GAA club is Lucan Sarsfields and a pub in the town bears the name 'The Vesey Arms'.
Lucan is generally considered in two parts - old Lucan, and new Lucan. Old Lucan consists of the main town of Lucan, containing smaller roads and smaller shops, resting in the Liffey Valley. New Lucan is considered to be the majority of the newer housing developments, built South of the main town, out of the valley, and stretching as far as Clondalkin and Tallaght.
Lucan has undergone massive change in the last 10 years. After the building of the M50 motorway and N4 interchange, and the staggering increase in house prices and jobs during the Celtic Tiger era, Lucan quickly became one of the most desirable places to buy a new home, given its easy access to Dublin City and relatively low house prices, with many thousands of homes being built in a matter of years. Building development is still ongoing on a large, albeit smaller scale today. Where once it was considered a satellite town of Dublin, Lucan is now part of the Greater Dublin Area, and the last town one meets when leaving Dublin on the N4.
The population of Lucan has tripled over the last 10 years to more than 20,000 inhabitants. With this has brought jobs, prosperity and high-profile retail developments, but has also generated traffic congestion. The N4 is considered to be one of the most congested roads in the city where it meets the motorway, as traffic regularly stretches back for up to 4 miles at rush hour.
- See also: List of towns in the Republic of Ireland