Culture Night Cork City 2016 – Visit the old Cork Prison - September 6th, 2016
Cork City Culture Night
Former Cork City Prison at Rathmore Road Opens to Public Friday, September 16, 2016 5pm to 10pm
The Irish Prison Service is delighted to have been asked by the event organisers to participate in Cork City Culture night on Friday 16th of September, 2016.
Our contribution to Culture Night is to open the former Cork City Prison at Rathmore Road to the public from 5 PM until 10 PM on 16th of September
Rathmore Road in Cork city has a very long association with detention facilities. The former Cork City Prison was opened there in 1806 as a British military barracks and included a military detention barracks. At the time the complex was known simply as “The Barracks ”
In 1849, it was renamed “Victoria Barracks “in honour of a visit by Queen Victoria. Following Irish independence in 1922, it continued to serve as a military detention Barracks within the complex that was later to be named “Collins Barracks “in honour of General Michael Collins.
On 28 June 1963 the Barrack Complex was visited by President John F Kennedy.
In 1972 the detention Barracks element of Collins Barracks Cork, was transferred to the ownership of the Department of Justice where after it became a civilian remand prison in 1973. In 1983 it became a full committal prison and remained so until its closure on 12 February 2016.
In summary, the former Cork City Prison has been a place of detention for 210 years.
The 1916 Patriot Thomas Kent was executed in the grounds of Victoria detention barracks on 9th. May 1916 and his remains were buried there. Kent’s remains were exhumed in June 2015 and given a State Funeral with full military honours to his home place of Castlelyons in north Cork on 18th. September 2015.
On Friday, 16 September 2016 members of the public are invited to visit the former city prison where you will be given a short tour of parts of the prison and an opportunity to visit the area of the prison where Commandant Thomas Kent of the Galtee Battalion of the Irish Volunteers was executed.
You may also pay respects to Commandant Kent’s memory at the plot when he was interred for 99 years
You will also have an opportunity to see the memorial plaque to Thomas Kent specially commissioned in 1966 for the 50th anniversary of his execution. The piece of art was created by local sculptor Seamus Murphy whose best known work was the design of Blackpool church in Cork.
The cell where Thomas Kent was detained prior to his execution is also open for respectful viewing and it has been furnished in as close a manner as possible to that which would’ve been there at the time in 1916.
Entry to the former Corks City Prison at Rathmore Road, is from 5 PM to 10.00 PM and is free of charge. There is no need to book in advance.
Everyone is very welcome to attend and we look forward to seeing you there.
Any enquiries to: Ciarán Nevin, Irish Prison Service HQ: telephone 0433335224 or by email to: cmnevin@irishprisons.ie
From nation’s capital to county town, everyone’s getting involved! Arts and cultural organisations open their doors until late with hundreds of free events, tours, talks & performances for you, your family and friends to enjoy. So get involved!
For more information please click on the link below
