Woodview Cottages

PHOTOGRAPHED EARLY NOVEMBER 2023

Woodview Cottages has been described as small enclave of pretty former council houses set beside a large green and across the road from Dodder Valley Park. They cottages were built in 1916 on the site of an old paper mill.

Rathfarnham has three rivers all running south through it from the mountains: the Dodder, the Owendoher and Whitechurch Stream. All three were extensively harnessed before the twentieth century to power water mills, which for much of the 18th and 19th centuries, were used for the paper trade. In Rathfarnham itself, there were several paper mills, one at the bottom of Church Lane, which ran from the village of Rathfarnham, down to the river Dodder, in front of Woodview cottages. It was first established by William Lake of Rathfarnham, in 1719 but later taken by over by William and Thomas Slater.

The papermaking industry in Rathfarnham began to decline in the late 19th century, as new technologies and cheaper labor sources made it difficult for Irish mills to compete. By the early 20th century, all of the paper mills in Rathfarnham had closed.

Today, there are no longer any active paper mills in Rathfarnham. However, the area’s history of paper-making is still remembered, and there are a number of historical sites and artefacts that relate to the industry.