Although the Keystone beneath the lantern on the front of Whelans bears the year 1894 this only signifies the granting of a licence to the then owners Galvin.
In fact the pub's history doesn't start there. The earliest definite record of a public house on this site dates from 1772, when Christopher Brady operated a licensed premises on what was then still popularly known as Kevin's Port.
History:
 Since then Gary Whelan and Ian Keith made inroads into making Whelan's the music venue it is today. While renovating, they stripped synthetic tiles, plasters and worktops that were added in the middle of the century in an act of modernisation,
and uncovered the original wooden and stone surfaces. The cost of renovation led to large bank loans, which in turn led to large interest repayments and the pair eventually had to pack it in and sell up.
Frank Gleeson bought the venue in 1999. Rather than follow the trend at that time in Dublin to develop the site into a tacky “superpub”, Gleeson nurtured the venue's traditional values, and at the same time invested heavily to improve facilities
for both customers and performers. His ethos was to create a platform that would nurture both local Irish talent and, at the same time, cater for international stars.
One feature of the bar is the Stone man, a life size statue of a lone Dublin drinker propped against the Stone Bar. The statue is made with fired wood chips, a sort of complex paper mache.
Reputation and Stars:
Whelan's reputation is universal. Tourists from all over the world regularly visit to photograph the venue that has played host to such legends as Jeff Buckley, Nick Cave, Christy Moore, and Peter Buck and Mike Mills from REM. In recent years Whelan's has hosted concerts for important new stars such as Damien Rice, Artic Monkeys and the Magic Numbers. It is a venue that musicians from all over the world consistently request to perform in and return to.
The Music Venue:
 The music venue was originally a warehouse and was purchased at the same time as the recent renovation of the front bar. and has been similarly restored and decorated.
The ground floor of the music venue features murals reproduced from the Book Of Kells. The three main murals, which are hidden by the stage curtain at nighttime, depict three of the four evangelists - Mark as the lion, Luke as the calf and John as the eagle (the calf also appears in the front bar). These panels are taken from the front pages of the gospels and the animals are shown with their usual vague collection of physical characteristics. The Whelans logo itself is one of the many feline monsters which occur throughout the book.
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