Bantry Museum is located in Wolfe Tone Square behind the Fire Station (Eircode: P75 TC64). It is open from X To X. For more information contact ….
This little museum holds an eclectic mix of artefacts, including some items that were manufactured in Bantry such as the Coomhola Anvil which was fashioned at the Iron Ore Smelting Works at Mill Little, Coomhola, during early 18th century. Also a woollen blanket made in the Bantry Woollen Mills can be seen there. Of more recent origin is a Flatley clothes drier made in the Flatley plant at Newtown in 1960’s.
As well as housing physical artefacts which are viewable by the public, Bantry Museum is also the location of BH&AS’s reference library and archive, comprising multiple bookshelves filled with albums of hand-written and typed historical research, maps, newspaper clippings, and photographs.
It took almost a decade of hard work and negotiating and sourcing artefacts and historical data, before Bantry Historical & Archaeological Society proudly opened its brand new enterprise, namely Bantry Museum in the little building on the rock behind Bantry Fire station on Sunday 3rd August 1986. Eugene O’Sullivan and Patricia Greacen were particularly active on
this initiative.
The local and business communities have been very supportive of this project, and it continues to be staffed by volunteer members with help from Solas. The Musuem is very popular with visitors and locals alike, as their comments testify:
“A true gem! What a beautiful place to visit…”
“WOW! It might be small but it packs a punch with so much fascinating stuff…”
“There are amazing items in here, old pictures, old clothes that the women wore…”
“Really good collection – local material of a disparate nature but fascinating”