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The Area in the late 1800's (c) OSI 

Welcome to Courting The Dame blog where we will endeavor to uncover the history and stories of Dame Lane and Dame Court. These two small lanes house a eclectic array of businesses and they run parallel to Dame Street and Exchequer Street. Dame Lane connects through Georges Street to the gates of the 12th Century built Dublin Castle. Dame Street itself runs from the front entrance of Trinity College up to the rising ground of Cork Hill and Dames Gate, or the Eastern Gate of Dublin Castle and the ancient walls of the city. Dame Street took its name from a church erected near it, inside the city walls called the Church of St. Mary Les Dames and therefore Dame Lane and Dame Court were named similarly. The area had been redeveloped by the Wide Streets Commission, who had been tasked in 1757 by an Act of Parliament to bring order to the chaotic streets of Dublin. Patrick Sweetman’s Sugar House was demolished, and new housing put in place including Dame Court was developed. The 18th Century sugar house was where sugar was refined for brewing, distilling and confectionary businesses. Dublin in that period breweries and distilleries scattered across the city.

The area as it is today. (c) OSI

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