Mystery ringing any bells?

There is a mystery afoot on Cork city’s northside and the Parish of Shandon is calling on the public’s help to solve it.

Almost 100 years ago, the exact dates of the consecration of Saint Anne’s Church and its iconic Shandon Bells were lost in a fire.

Now, as the parish prepares to celebrate the church’s 300th anniversary, it is calling on anyone who might have any information on these exact dates to come forward.

Church of Ireland Bishop of Cork Reverend Dr Paul Colton said: “The problem is, the parish records were lost in the fire in June 1922. We have looked at all sorts of records, spoken with parishioners, some local people, and spoken to some archivists and historians.

“We have checked dates on parish silver, on plaques and on the font in the church. We need help!”

According to Bishop Colten, there appears to be no foundation stone and no memorial stone commemorating the church’s consecration.

He said: “This church is much more than a parish church. It is a potent, evocative and emotive symbol of Cork around which the people of Cork rally, unite and identify. So, we are appealing to everyone to help us to solve our Shandon mystery.

“It just may be that someone has an original source in an archive that we do not know about, or information from a secondary source in a book or diary for example. We are going to celebrate the 300th anniversary of Shandon starting later this year, regardless, but it would also, as part of that, be great to solve our Shandon mystery. Indeed, someone out there may readily have an easy answer for us.”

Bishop Paul Colton presided at the Sunday morning service in Saint Anne’s last Sunday after which he officially launched the ‘Shandon Mystery’ appeal.

The parish and diocese are in the process of developing a full tercentenary programme in partnership with the city of Cork, the local community, history groups, and many interested parties, including the Church of Ireland nationally.