€1.2m Collins museum to open in Clonakilty next month

A long-awaited Michael Collins Museum in his native West Cork is expected to open to the public next month.

And, in a separate initiative, work is to begin on designing a special Collins ‘trail’ which will clearly signpost locations throughout the region which have links with the life of the renowned freedom fighter.

Final preparations are now being carried out at the €1.2m Michael Collins Museum in Clonakilty.

Footpaths around the exterior of the building, Number Seven Emmet Square, have been completed and the museum is due to open to the public on April 23.

Meanwhile, plans are being put in place by Cork County Council for an official opening of the facility in the near future.

A manager is expected to be appointed in the coming weeks to oversee and maintain the museum during opening hours and to act as a tour guide for visitors.

The museum extends over three floors and includes exhibitions on Collins, and other local figures of note such as Tadhg an Astna and Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa.

“There are full-sized replicas of Collins in uniform and a replica of the bike he used as well, along with papers and documents associated with him which have been donated by the Collins family,” says Fine Gael councillor Noel O’Donovan, who has long been fascinated by the project.

Mr O’Donovan is set to take up a position as one of the directors of the museum’s new board of management shortly. His grand-uncle Seán Hayes, TD for Cork West, was a close friend of Collins.

“The museum is a great addition to the already impressive collection of Michael Collins-associated sites throughout West Cork, such as the Michael Collins Centre; his birthplace at Sam’s Cross and Beal na mBláth where he was shot, and other places closely associated with him.

“We know that Collins lived in the square. While there may be some controversy over the exact location of where he lived, the clear fact is he did reside at a property in Emmet Square with his sister Margaret and her husband Patrick, who ran a local newspaper,” said Mr O’Donovan.

He said strong tribute should be paid to the former Clonakilty Town Council and to Cork County Council for the vision shown in bringing the museum project to completion.

Its location, and many more landmarks which are closely associated with Collin’s life, are set to be publicly highlighted in a special new signage trail.

In a project initiated by the county council and Fáilte Ireland in response to demand from the public, new signage will provide directions to locations such as the Michael Collins Centre, Lisavaird Village, Woodfield, Sam’s Cross, and Béal na mBláth.

As part of the €40,000 project, it is proposed to locate signposts on local and regional routes along with the N71 and the N22.

“This is the key to linking up all these locations as many visitors do not know how to get from, for example, Beal na mBláth to Clonakilty or Sam’s Cross or to the Michael Collins Centre at Castleview,” Mr O’Donovan said

The erection of signage is expected to be completed by February 2017. “Over the years what signage was in place has been removed or stolen by over-enthusiastic tourists,” he claimed.