Call to name proposed new Liffey bridge after forgotten 1916 Rising hero Elizabeth O’Farrell
Ideas have already been thrown into the ring for the name of the planned new bridge which will cross the River Liffey as part of Dublin Port expansion plans.
A proposal to name the bridge the Elizabeth O’Farrell was put forward on Thursday by city councillors.
The name was proposed by Independent councillor Nial Ring and Green Party councillor Donna Cooney at a meeting of the city council commemoration and naming committee.
Dublin Port launched plans this week to develop the port with a new 2.2km road and lifting bridge linking the north and south side.
Elizabeth O’Farrell was a trained midwife known for her role in the Easter 1916 rising.
Born in 1884, Ms O’Farrell was a member of Cumann na mBan and performed nursing and courier duties during the rising, delivering dispatches and ammunition to rebels.
She risked her life to deliver Pádraig Pearse’s terms of surrender to the British forces on Friday, April 28, and stood with him when he surrendered.
She was one of several women who tended to wounded rebels in the GPO on Easter Monday and has since become one of the hidden heroes of the rising.
After a short period in prison, she remained a republican for the rest of her life, carrying dispatches for the IRA during the war of Independence and opposed the 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty.
She spent the rest of her life working as a midwife in the National Maternity Hospital and died in 1957. She is buried in Glasnevin cemetery.
The redevelopment plans for Dublin Port, also known as the 3FM project, will create a bridge adjacent to the Tom Clarke Bridge to divert lorries and heavy traffic away from residential areas.
The plans include pedestrian and cycle paths, a maritime village and significant expansion of the port.
