Tallaght - Famous People

William Howard Russell (1821-1907)
Born at Lilyvale in Jobstown, Tallaght. He was a journalist with the London Times and reported on Daniel O’Connell’s repeal campaign and on the famine. On the outbreak of the Crimean War he became the first war correspondent and was later knighted for his work.

Author of Malachi Horan Remembers. Lived at Killinarden Hill, Tallaght for his whole life.

Prolific novelist and poet. Lived at Whitehall, Tallaght. Close associate of W.B. Yeats who used to stay at Whitehall for long periods.

Outstanding painter of religious subjects. Became interested in stained glass windows. One of her windows My Four Green Fields (1938-39) was commissioned by the Irish government and was exhibited in the Irish Pavilion at the World’s Fair in New York. Considered to be one of her most important works, it is now to be seen in Government Buildings on Upper Merrion Street in Dublin. She lived at the Dower House in Rathfarnham and is buried in St. Maelruain’s Churchyard in Tallaght.

She studied under André L'Hote in Paris, whose influence led to a long association with Evie Hone's stained glass studio in Dublin. She came to Ireland in 1935, and apart from the war years and a short period in 1955 she spent the rest of her life living and working in this country. She is buried in Tallaght.

He was elected Bishop of Cloyne, Cork and Ross in 1952 and Archbishop of Dublin, Bishop of Glendalough and Kildare and Primate of Ireland in 1956. In 1969 he was elected Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, an appointment that coincided with a long period of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland. He had contributed in 1951 to a facsimile edition of the Book of Kells, on which he later became an acknowledged authority, lecturing widely and publishing several monographs. For thirty-seven years he contributed a weekly column of spiritual reflections to the Irish Times and was one of the most admired and loved churchmen of his generation. He married Mercedes Gywnn of Prospect House and is buried in Tallaght.

In 1971 his "Children of Lir" was unveiled at the Garden of Remembrance in Parnell Square, Dublin. Other famous works of his in Dublin include the Jim Larkin statue on O Connell Street, and the Charioteers of Life outside the Irish Life Centre on Lower Abbey Street. Lived at Prospect House, Knocklyon. He is buried in St. Maelruain’s graveyard in Tallaght.

From Fettercairn, Tallaght. Holds the Irish goal scoring record, having scored over 50 goals for Ireland (as at 20th December 2011). He was also the youngest player to have scored an international goal for Ireland; against Malta in October 1998, aged 18. After playing for several UK soccer clubs, he currently plays Major League Soccer for Los Angeles Galaxy.