A dwindling population means St Mark's a Church of Ireland parish church in Dublin is closing.
A final service after 240 years at the Church of Ireland parish church of St Mark on Pearse Street in Dublin. The building and adjoining graveyard have been sold to Trinity College Dublin. The parish has been united with St Anne's in Dawson Street.
The last service at St Mark's was conducted by the rector Reverend John Paterson. He says the closure is due to the movement of population from the city centre to the suburbs.
Suburban parishes are all expanding at an enormous rate.
He believes this fate will befall most city centre churches as a number of parishes are amalgamating.
Throughout its history St Mark's played an important role in the lives of the people in the area. Before the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland it handled many local government services.
They had to collect the rates and they were just as unpopular as that as the corporation seem to be today.
Fire brigade, police, road building, cleansing of the streets, quays, lanes and alleys, upkeep of the sewers and street lighting were all handled by the vestry of the parish.
They weren't just looking after the religious life of the area but even sort of cared for the secular life as well.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 1 June 1971. The reporter is Tom MacSweeney.
