Public museum amasses 60,000 objects since 1945

Ireland’s oldest local authority museum which happens to be in Cork is set to get a ‘birthday facelift’ for its 80th anniversary.

The Cork Public Museum will be undergoing external refurbishment works which are due to be carried out throughout the spring and summer.

Since opening in 1945, the museum has amassed a collection of around 60,000 objects that cover about 7,000 years of human habitation in Cork, from pre-history to modern times. In recent decades, a new state of the art extension was added, allowing the museum to expand its operational capacity to increase research, training and visitor facilities. The museum attracts about 60,000 visitors annually, though it is hoped this can be increased as the museum evolves.

Commenting on the planned refurbishment of the museum, Curator Dan Breen said: “These works will have a positive impact on the future development of the museum, ensuring the exterior envelope of the building is secured. We have big plans for the future of Cork Public Museum, but none of these would be possible without this important structural work.”

Officially opened to the public on 4 April 1945, in the old ‘Shrubberies’ building in Fitzgerald Park, the museum will see its roof and external render of the building removed and refurbished. This work will be carried out by HG Construction (Ire) Ltd, in conjunction with JCA Architects and the City Architects Department. This work is funded by Cork City Council, with additional funding provided by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage through their Historic Structure Fund.

Since 2016, the museum has improved its collection management systems, online engagement, as well as its public profile. Staffing structures have been updated with the creation of new positions to better function in a changing museum environment. Despite all these changes, the heart of the museum remains the old building. Therefore, it is important that it remains an integral part of Cork Public Museum for at least another 80 years.

The building, built in the mid-19th century, had once housed Cork’s first public museum, the Fitzgerald Park Municipal Museum, between 1910 and 1924. The burning of City Hall during the War of Independence in 1920 meant that the old building in Fitzgerald Park became the headquarters for municipal affairs in the city until the re-opening of City Hall in 1936.

Following a very successful temporary exhibition on Irish political history that was held in the offices of the old Cork Examiner building in March 1942, public enthusiasm for a new museum blossomed. Spearheaded by an active Museum Committee, that included lord mayor Richard Anthony, politician and philanthropist, Jennie Dowdall and numerous influential academics from UCC.

It was decided that the new museum would be jointly managed and funded by Cork Corporation, UCC and Cork County Council. Prof. Michael J O’Kelly from the Department of Archaeology, UCC, was appointed the first museum curator and set about establishing the foundation on which future development was built.