Postcards turn back century for diaspora towns
Cork County Library and Arts Service has produced the postcards, which feature streetscapes in six Co Cork towns, and these will shortly be made available to the public through branch libraries in their towns and from the mobile library service.
The towns featured in the postcards are Cobh, Charleville, Clonakilty, Mallow, Rosscarbery, and Youghal.
The “then and now” postcards will be split with a scene from the town 100 years ago and how the same place looks today.
According to photographer Martin Walsh, who snapped the latest pictures, in many cases the views are still remarkably similar.
“Cobh doesn’t have the spire on its St Colman’s Cathedral [in the original photograph] and the majority of the little houses that were near the waterfront at Rosscarbery are no longer there,” he said. “But, apart from that, very little has actually changed.”
The postcards will be officially launched on Monday at the Cork County Library headquarters, Carrigrohane Rd by the Mayor of County Cork, Barbara Murray.
As part of the launch, former county architect and current Tidy Towns adjudicator Billy Houlihan will give a short talk on the past, present, and future of the six selected towns and the changes they have seen throughout the years.
The postcards are part of the county council’s initiative to encourage Cork people to come back home for The Gathering.
The council is also funding many events which will take place throughout the county as part of the tourism initiative.
The postcards will be available from mid-February at branch libraries in Charleville, Clonakilty, Cobh, Mallow and Youghal as well the library headquarters on Carrigrohane Rd.
They will also be available from the W est Cork mobile library, which visits Rosscarbery every Tuesday from 2.30pm to 4pm.
Details of library opening hours are available on www.corkcoco.ie/library and 021-4546499.
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