ONE OF West Cork’s biggest success stories is celebrating its many achievements as it marks its 25th anniversary this year.
Skibbereen Heritage Centre has led the way since it was first opened by Minister Sile de Valera back in July 2000, winning deserved praise for a variety of projects and exhibitions.
The centre, located at the Old Gasworks site, is operated by Cork County Council which helped a number of local organisations realise their dream of opening an interpretive centre.
Since then the centre has brought hundreds of thousands of visitors to the area, generating tourism revenue and creating a series of heritage assets for the town which helped to raise its profile internationally.
Visitor numbers topped 16,400 last year and the centre was placed in the top 10% of visitor attractions worldwide by TripAdvisor, having been granted the prestigious ‘Traveller’s Choice Award’ again in 2024.
Staff compiled a series of genealogy podcasts in 2024 and invited students from three US colleges to the area for the Study Abroad programmes, with some staying for up to six weeks.
Staff at the centre oversaw the Cork Graveyard Project, compiling a previously unavailable online database of almost 100,000 burial records to help people search free of charge for their ancestors.
It has provided a venue for cultural events, brought US colleges to Skibbereen to work and study, and has helped thousands of the Diaspora to find their ‘homeplace’ in West Cork.
The Centre has also frequently represented Skibbereen in the international media, including appearances on BBC, UTV, Channel Four, PBS and the Discovery Channel, as well as featuring on RTE and TG4, radio stations and podcasts.
The recipient of numerous awards over the years, its Famine exhibition has established Skibbereen as a ‘must-visit’ location for those interested in this period of Irish history while its genealogy service has linked thousands of people to their West Cork ancestry.
This cohort includes the writer John Le Carré (David Cornwell), and these loyal visitors return time after time to their ‘homeplace’.
The Centre also stages an annual series of events in celebration of Heritage Week and Culture Night and also promotes the heritage of West Cork through the many projects it has engaged with over the years.
These include the highly successful Stories of the Revolution decade of commemorations project, to which over 800 local children contributed.
Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Joe Carroll, commended the staff of the Heritage Centre for their work over the years. ‘The Heritage Centre is a huge asset to Skibbereen town,’ he said.
‘I look forward to seeing it grow and develop further in the years to come thanks to the ongoing support of Cork County Council.’
