15 July 2022
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
Historic Town Maps for the towns of Macroom and Millstreet were recently launched in Macroom’s Town Hall and Millstreet’s Carnegie Hall respectively.
The project was led by Cork County Council’s County Archaeologist with significant input by Tidy Towns representatives and local historians from each town. In Macroom, local representatives included Cllr. Martin Coughlan and John Lyons from Macroom Tidy Towns, together with local historian Barry O’Brien. In Millstreet, the local representatives included Derry Sheehan and Gordon O’Keeffe from Millstreet Tidy Towns, together with Seán Radley, curator of Millstreet Museum.
In Macroom, some of the key locations included are Macroom Town Hall, Castle Gates, St. Colman’s Church and Macroom Bridge. Sites included for Millstreet include Carnegie Hall, Drishane Castle, Tangney’s Drapers, Mount Leader and Vernacular House, Killarney Road.
Mayor of the County of Cork. Cllr. Danny Collins welcomed the new publications, “These maps highlight the key locations of significant historic and heritage value within each town and will be a very useful tool for locals and visitors. The quality of the finished map with the beautiful illustrations and graphics show the effort and consideration that has gone into the production and everyone involved in the finished product should be very proud. These maps are for the local people and will be a great historical tool for generations to come as a reference to key historical sites unique to each town.”
The production of each map involved great consideration of the sites to be included which ensured that each town map showcases key buildings and locations, all illustrated by Rhoda Cronin Allaniac and described by writer Elena O’Brien Turk.
Copies of the maps are available in Macroom Town Hall, Carnegie Hall Millstreet, Macroom and Millstreet Libraries and will also be distributed to local schools and hotels in the area.
The Historic Town Maps are available on the Council’s website at https://www.corkcoco.ie/en/visitor/cork-county-historic-town-maps
The maps were funded by Macroom Municipal District through Cork County Council’s Town Development Fund.