Lord Mayor Cllr Fergal Dennehy with Michelle Carew, Ruth Lynch, Cork City Council and Daniel Breen, Curator at Cork Public Museum at a civic reception in City Hall to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the Cork Public Museum. Photos: Darragh Kane

Cork Public Museum turns 80

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Daniel Breen with his family Carola, Ethan and Hannah.

Liudmyla Bortok

Published: Wed 22 Oct 2025, 1:35 PM

Last updated: Wed 22 Oct 2025, 1:42 PM

Cork City Hall hosted a special civic reception last week to mark the 80th anniversary of Cork Public Museum — celebrating eight decades of cultural preservation, public service, and community pride.

Founded on 4 April 1945, Cork Public Museum is Ireland’s oldest local authority museum. Its home, Shrubbery House in Fitzgerald Park, has been central to its story since day one.

Built around 1845 by Charles Beamish of the famous brewing family, the house has seen many chapters of Cork’s history. It served as a convent for the Bons Secours nuns in the 1860s, hosted King Edward VII in 1903, and became a temporary seat of local government after City Hall was burned down in 1920.

Today, Shrubbery House holds around 60,000 artefacts spanning more than 7,000 years of Cork’s history. It is the museum’s heart — home to its exhibitions, research, and public facilities. A major refurbishment, funded mainly by Cork City Council, was completed this month.

Speaking at the reception, the Lord Mayor of Cork Cllr Fergal Dennehy said: “Cork Public Museum is not just a building filled with artefacts, it is a living institution that tells the story of our city and its people. For 80 years, it has stood as a beacon of education, preservation, and civic pride.”

Cork Public Museum was founded through a partnership between University College Cork, Cork Corporation, and Cork County Council.

In 2023, the museum achieved Full Accreditation under the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland — a mark of excellence from the Heritage Council.

The reception honoured the museum’s five curators — MJ O’Kelly, Seamus Ó Coigligh, Aodh Ó Tuama, Stella Cherry, and current curator Dan Breen — along with generations of staff and volunteers who helped shape the museum’s success.

The museum team has grown in recent years and now includes an education officer, collections and documentation officer, digital officers, and new museum attendants — eight staff in total — who continue to deliver engaging exhibitions and community programmes.

The evening closed with a shared commitment to support Cork Public Museum as it continues to tell Cork’s story and serve its people for generations to come.

This article was produced with the support of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme funded by Coimisiún na Meán.