23-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
End-of-terrace coastal home from golden age of ‘Irish Brighton' offers B2 BER, four doubles and garden with fire pit
Asking price: €1.15m
Agent: Sherry Fitzgerald (01) 286 6630
Bray in Co Wicklow was once dubbed the 'Brighton of Ireland'. Like the famous English seaside town, it has its own promenade, the well known Esplanade, which was built in Victorian times to attract tourists and home buyers seeking a life of leisure by the sea.
The similarities were intentional, as Brighton offered inspiration to the man responsible for Bray's design as a seaside resort town.
William Dargan, the son of a tenant farmer from Co Laois, was one of the most prominent Irish engineers of the 19th century.
Known best for his work on railways, Dargan also designed and oversaw the building of Ireland's first railway line from Dublin to Dun Laoghaire in 1834, and later worked to establish many of the lines around the country.
An extension of the line to Bray was added from Dublin in 1854, and had an almost instant effect on the town. With the improvement in access from Dublin, more people found it possible to live or holiday in Bray and in the 20 years after it opened, the population increased from 4,151 to 6,504.
It was Dargan who first realised Bray's potential as a tourist destination. In 1859, he obtained a lease for a stretch of the coastline there from the Earl of Meath, and the first inception of the Esplanade seafront promenade was built, after which the later hotel was named.
Dargan, alongside John Quin, the owner of Quin's Hotel (now the Royal Hotel), recognised the potential of the town and initiated its development as a seaside resort on a large scale.
In 1859, Dargan paid for the first efforts at constructing the Esplanade which, according to an 1860 guide book, was 'open to everyone who chooses to enjoy its delightful expanse'. In 1881, additional work costing £20,000 was invested in improving it further.
Just off the waterfront is No4 Warburton Terrace, an end of terrace four-bedroom house which dates from Bray's glory days as a Victorian resort.
Today, it's home to Patrick Sammon and his wife Madeline. Patrick is employed as a leasing specialist with WeWork and is originally from Letterkenny, Co Donegal. His wife Madeline, who hails from Queensland Australia, works for Google.
They have two children, Isla (three) and Charlie (almost one), with another on the way. The couple bought the 1862-built home five years ago.
'We'd been living in Grand Canal and were attracted by the opportunity to own a period house,' says Sammon. 'It also offered good bang for our buck.'
The 2,433 sq ft period home came with most of its original features, and had been previously owned by an interior designer, who'd left her mark.
However, Sammon and his wife planned to put their own stamp on it. 'It was, for the most part, in good condition, but the decor was not to our taste,' he says. 'The house was a pandemic purchase as we bought it between lockdowns,' he adds. 'With extra time on our hands, we did the decorating ourselves.'
They painted all of the rooms, changing the colour scheme, the furniture and the artwork, and re-sprayed the kitchen, which now has navy blue and white glass-fronted cupboards with a white Ibiza marble counter.
There's an island in the centre with a Belfast sink and a brass tap, with a splash back of white subway tiles. Double doors here lead directly to the south-facing back split-level garden.
The sitting room is at the front of the house, and here the sash windows, wooden floors, cornicing and the ceiling rose are all original.
'The ceiling there is 10ft-high, which adds to the feeling of space,' says Sammon. There's a white marble fireplace here with a large antique mirror above it.
There are seven fireplaces in total, two of which have woodburning stoves. The others have been capped off. 'When she first saw the fireplaces, Madeline fell in love with them because growing up in Queensland; she never had an open fire,' he says.
The house has four double bedrooms and an attic room, which can also be used as a bedroom.
After moving in, the couple quickly realised that the old utility room, which had a lean-to in bad repair, was in a great position at the back of the house.
'We realised it faced south and got the sun for most of the day, so we set about making it into another reception room,' says Sammon. 'We put down new hardwood flooring and added floor-to-ceiling glass sliding doors that open to the patio outside.'
Unlike the rest of the house, this room is thoroughly modern. The beige walls and cream carpet provide a feeling of warmth, and a photograph of an old camper van and palm trees, reminiscent of backpacking Australia, takes up most of one wall.
'It's an amazing space for entertaining; especially in the summer as we open up the glass doors and the guests spill into the back garden. We've held many a barbecue in the back.'
The garden has a fire pit and dining area. Here, they've added plants and some colourful cushions. 'It's our little oasis. We spend a lot of time out there in the summer when the weather is good,' he says.
They replaced the roof four years ago, increasing the energy rating from a C1 to a B2. 'A potential buyer could achieve an A rating if they were to upgrade the windows in the house,' he adds.
Bray's beach is 150 metres away, so the Sammons have taken up sea swimming since moving in. 'We also installed an outdoor shower in the back and have our paddle boards hanging on the wall,' says Sammon.
'There's a laneway at the side of the building which we use to access the back garden when we come in from the sea.
'There are a number of trendy coffee shops in the area and also a new wine bar called Conlon's, which my wife loves, just 50 metres from the house,' he adds. 'There's also a roof top sauna in Bray now. Living here is really a lifestyle.'
It's also on the Dart line, offering easy access to Dublin city centre. The Sammons are selling the house now because an opportunity has arisen to buy a family member's home in Blackrock. 'We'll still be on the Dart line, but living here has been a wonderful experience,' he says.
The house is on offer through Sherry FitzGerald for €1.15m.
