JOHNSTON, CHRISTMAS

Architect, active in Co. Wicklow from the 1790s onwards.   Christmas Johnston was a son of ENOCH JOHNSTON  ENOCH JOHNSTON and appears to have worked with his father at Coollattin, Co. Wicklow, in the 1790s,   Among the Wentworth Woodhouse Muniments in the Sheffield Archives are drawings for the house inscribed 'The late Mr Johnston's Plan copied by his son Christmas Johnston with the addition of a kitchen etc. as proposed by Joh. Lassells'.(1)  After Enoch Johnston's death in 1797 the money still due to him for his work at Coollattin was paid to Christmas Johnston instead.(2) In 1813 Christmas Johnston designed an extension to the old Church of Ireland church at Carnew, Co. Wicklow,(3) and he is almost certainly the 'Mr Johnston, Architect' who, between March 1820 and December 1822, was paid a  total of £871.7s. for enlarging Kilcommon (Crosspatrick) Church of Ireland church, Co. Wicklow, completing the steeple, repairing the old part and putting the pews in order.(4)  Samuel Lewis lists Christmas Johnston, Esq., of Coolafancy, near Tinahely, Co. Wicklow, as a subscriber to his Topographical dictionary of Ireland (1837), and in his entry on the parish of Crosspatrick mentions Coolafancy 'of Christmas Johnstone, Esq.' as one of the two principal seats in the parish.(5)

See WORKS.

References

(1) WWM/MP/30/1-3  [1795] (information from Matt Johnston, Dec 2010).
(2) NLI MS 6015 (IAA, Edward McParland files, Acc. 2008/44).
(3) Carnew Vestry Minutes, http://www.carnewhistoricalsociety.com/articles/carnew_vestry_minutes.htm (last visited, Dec 2010;  reference from Matt Johnston, Dec 2010). 
(4) RCB Library, 'An account of of all sums of money levied for building and repairing of churches...June 1824' (information from Frank Keohane, 2010).   
(5) Samuel Lewis, A Topographical dictionary of Ireland (1837), I, 438.

3 work entries listed in chronological order for JOHNSTON, CHRISTMAS

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Building:	CO. WICKLOW, CARNEW, CHURCH (CI)
Date:	1813
Nature:	CJ designs extension to same
Refs:	Carnew Vestry Minutes, http://www.carnewhistoricalsociety.com/articles/carnew_vestry_minutes.htm (last visited, Dec 2010;  reference from Matt Johnston, Dec 2010).

Building:	CO. WICKLOW, TINAHELY, CHURCH (CI, KILCOMMON PARISH)
Date:	1820-22
Nature:	'Mr Johnston, Architect' (probably Christmas Johnston) paid total of £871.7s. for enlarging church, completing steeple, repairing old part of church and putting pews in order between March 1820 and Dec 1822.  'The church, a neat building,was enlarged in 1820, for which the late Board of First Fruits granted a loan of £700.'(Lewis).
Refs:	RCB Library, 'An account of of all sums of money levied for building and repairing of churches...June 1824' (information from Frank Keohane);  Samuel Lewis, A Topographical dictionary of Ireland (1837), II, 67;  exterior illus. in Clergy of Waterford, Lismore and Ferns (Ulster Historical Foundation, 2008), 447;  exterior illus. in Claude Costegalde & Brian Walker, The Church of Ireland: an illustrated history (2013), 345.

Building:	CO. WICKLOW, CARNEW
Date:	1835
Nature:	Payment of £216.3s. to CJ for completed building work (unspecified)
Refs:	Sheffield Archives, Wentworth Woodhouse Muniments, WWM/A924, 314-328 (information from Kevin Whelan, Oct 2021)