Cope Street

Cope Street

East end of the street
Native name	Sráid Cope (Irish)
Former name(s)	Cope Street South South Cope Street (until 1821)
Part of	Temple Bar
Namesake	Robert Cope
Length	100 m (330 ft)
Width	7 metres (23 ft)
Location	Dublin, Ireland
Postal code	D02
Coordinates	53°20′42″N6°15′45″W / 53.344918°N 6.262531°W / 53.344918; -6.262531
west end	Fownes Street
east end	Anglesea Street
Construction
Completion	1740s–50s
Other
Known for	Central Plaza, Georgian architecture, Asian restaurants

Cope Street is a street in the Temple Bar area of south Dublin, Ireland. ^[1]

Cope Street runs straight west–east from Fownes Street to Anglesea Street and is intersected by Crown Alley. The street is covered by setts.

History

John Rocque's 1756 map of Dublin, Cope Street at centre.

The street is named for Robert Cope (1679–1753), a Huguenot ^[2] 18th-century MP in the Irish House of Commons. His second marriage was to Elizabeth, daughter of Sir William Fownes, after whom Fownes Street is named. Talbot Street was known as Cope Street North or North Cope Street until 1821, and so should not be confused with Cope Street on the southside, which was sometimes called "Cope Street South" or "South Cope Street" until the northside street was renamed. ^{[3] [4] [5]}

Cope Street was to the east of medieval Dublin and began to be developed in the 18th century, appearing on John Rocque's 1756 map of Dublin. ^[6]

Many of its Georgian buildings are architecturally and historically significant. ^{[7] [8] [9] [10]} The 1918 brick building at 1–3 Cope Street is also on the National Built Heritage Service list, ^[11] as is the Victorian structure at the junction with Anglesea Street. ^[9]

The General Post Office was located on the street from 1757 until 1783. ^[12]

In 1799, the Commercial Buildings were constructed on Dame street with the rear facing onto Cope Street. These housed many of the most important offices in the city as well as the Dublin Stock Exchange for a period. ^{[13] [14]}

Originally, the street would have connected with Turnstile Alley (Foster Place) via a continuation street named Blackmore Yard. This laneway was later eliminated by the Wide Streets Commissioners around the beginning of the 19th century.

A factory at 7 Cope Street was the first in Ireland to make chamber pots and water closets. ^[2]

The Irish postcard makers Cardall were based at 8 Cope Street in the 1940s–60s. ^[15]

The Central Bank building was erected with the rear facing onto the street in 1979. It was renamed Central Plaza in 2017. ^[16]

The independent metal record label Sentinel Records was founded in 2000 and has one of its locations on Cope Street. ^[17]

An 18-month project to improve Dublin's Temple Bar square area began in 2023, covering 2,400 m² (0.59 acres), including Cope Street. ^[18]

Notable residents

The artist Francis Robert West lived on Cope Street in 1770–71. ^[19]

In the 19th century, the folklorist Patrick Kennedy was based on the corner of Anglesea Street and Cope Street. ^[20]

Cultural references

Cope Street appears in the work of James Joyce:

And one time [Leopold Bloom] led ["the old one"'s nephew] the rounds of Dublin and, by the holy farmer, he never cried crack till he brought him home as drunk as a boiled owl and he said he did it to teach him the evils of alcohol and by herrings, if the three women didn’t near roast him, it’s a queer story, the old one, Bloom’s wife and Mrs O’Dowd that kept the hotel. Jesus, I had to laugh at pisser Burke taking them off chewing the fat. And Bloom with his but don’t you see? and but on the other hand. And sure, more be token, the lout I’m told was in Power’s after, the blender’s, round in Cope street going home footless in a cab five times in the week after drinking his way through all the samples in the bloody establishment. Phenomenon!

—  Ulysses ^[21]

John T. Power was a wholesale spirit merchant at 18 Cope Street in 1904, when Ulysses is set. ^[22] The James Joyce-themed hotel Bloom's opened in 1980. ^[23]

Gallery

• 
  West end facing Fownes St Upper
• 
  View of setts
• 
  Central Plaza facing Cope St
• 
  Street art at the junction of Crown Alley and Cope St
• 
  Eastern half
• 
  Comet Records on the corner with Crown Alley

See also

• List of streets and squares in Dublin

References

1. "Dublin's Latin Quarter or just Temple of bars?". Irish Independent. 5 July 2015.
2. Curtis, M. (2016). Temple Bar: A History. Ireland: History Press.
3. "Uncovering Dublin's Hidden History Beneath Talbot Street". Molloy's Dublin.
4. "Irish Genealogical Research Society". www.irishancestors.ie.
5. "Maguires of Whitehall". YouWho?.
6. Excavations, Admin (16 July 2014). "19412 - Excavations.ie". excavations.ie.
7. "Graphic Studio Gallery, 184 Cope Street, Dublin 2, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland.
8. "Pho Ta, 6 Cope Street, Dublin 2, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland.
9. "Fresh, 5 Cope Street, Crown Alley, Dublin 2, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland.
10. "7 Cope Street, Dublin 2, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland.
11. "Bedford Stuy Temple Bar Barbers, 1-3 Cope Street, Fownes Street Upper, Dublin 2, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland.
12. Clerkin, Paul (15 August 2022). "Archiseek.com - 1780s - Former General Post Office, College Green, Dublin".
13. "Commercial Buildings Dublin". RTÉ Archives. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
14. "Irish Stock Exchange, 24-28 Anglesea Street, Dublin 2, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
15. "Wish you were here? Cork girl who became postcard star in '60s". echo live. 25 June 2023.
16. "bpoty2". www.irishbuildinganddesignawards.com.
17. "Shop". Sentinel Records.
18. Halpin, Hayley (10 May 2023). "Work begins on 18-month project to improve Dublin's Temple Bar square area". TheJournal.ie.
19. "Francis Robert West, Draughtsman - Irish Artists". www.libraryireland.com.
20. "O'Kennedy family genealogy - Irish Pedigrees". www.libraryireland.com.
21. "Ulysses, by James Joyce". www.gutenberg.org.
22. "James Joyce 21k | Nothing happens in the public houses. People drink".
23. McCourt, J. (2022:200). Consuming Joyce: 100 Years of Ulysses in Ireland. India: Bloomsbury Publishing.