Initially, the area around Jervis Street was a fashionable residential area. Towards the end of the 18th century, with the development of both the Fitzwilliam and Gardiner estates further out on the north-eastern and south-eastern sides of the city, the area began to become less fashionable.
In the 19th century, the area around Henry Street, Mary Street and Capel Street remained a busy central and commercial retail area.
20th century
At the beginning of the century from 1900-10, the Todd Burns department store was constructed on the corner of Mary Street and Jervis Street. As of 2024 this is the Irish headquarters of Penneys (Primark).[4]
In 1913, Jervis Street was one of the streets photographed by John Cooke, Honorary Treasurer of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), for presentation to the Dublin Housing Inquiry into the conditions of housing of the working classes of Dublin.[7]
In the early 20th century, the original Georgian and pre-Georgian housing stock began to crumble and much was demolished over the first quarter of the century with most of the remainder demolished over the rest of the 20th century.