On the right, east side, below the Chapel Lane, was Swords House and Demesne, occupied by Colonel
Eitzeustace Foster, the local landlord, who owned a lot of the house property and lands in the town. His demesne was bounded
by Chapel Lane, Sea Town or School Lane, Main Street, and Malahide Road, about 700 acres in all.
The entrance in the Main Street at the corner of Chapel Lane was bounded by a 10 ft. stone wall,
overhung by a shrubbery of evergreen Irish Oak trees. The entrance had a beautiful bronze gate about 15 ft. wide and 3 ft.
high, in two leaves. The mansion was only about 100 yds. from the gate, by a short curved drive, bordered with flowering shrubs.
There was a pretty little lodge at the corner of the drive opposite the gate, the occupants of which answered calls at the
gate. There was a side entrance in Chapel Lane and a farmyard entrance in School Lane, beside the farm buildings.
The House was of red brick and cut stone and four storeys, a flight of ornamental steps to the front
door on the second floor. The first ground floor was underground level with a wide area right around the buildings.
Colonel
Foster was a descendant of the Taylor family, an aristocrat family who succeeded in retaining their lands and religion after
the Reformation, families known as Castle Catholic. The Colonel himself was related to a Count Russell in France, apparently
through his father's side of the family, and he spent most of his winters in France, and when he died all his property went
to his French relations.
He was unmarried. He was generous to his servants and tenants. His family gave the land for the Catholic
Church and Schools. He was Governor of the Endowed Schools Board and a Justice of the Peace. He is buried in an unmarked spot
in the Catholic Cemetery, although he and his ancestors always had a private bench in the Catholic Church, and a private door
of entrance to the Catholic Church.
The Parish Priest had a special path and right of way through the demesne from the Parochial House
to the Church.
Irish politics overtook his generation and he is almost forgotten to the neighbourhood.
Re-
Frances William Coleman refares to Colonel ''Foster'' when in fact his name was ''Forster''
Fingal County Council have recently named a street after him. It's the street that runs parallel
with Main St.
Its where the Post Office is today . In fact the Colonal once owned all that land.
M.D.
