Woman who campaigned to keep Rory Gallagher's guitar in Ireland named Cork Person of the Month
January Cork Person of the Month Sheena Crowley, centre receiving her award on Tuesday. Picture: Vitaliy Makhnanov
The woman who was instrumental keeping rock and blues legend Rory Gallagher’s auctioned Fender Stratocaster guitar in Ireland has been named the first Cork Person of the Month for 2025.
Sheena Crowley, who runs Crowley’s Music Centre on Friar Street in Cork City, was honoured not just for her tireless pre-auction campaign but also for her remarkable contribution to the city’s music community across several decades.
“Everyone in Cork loves Rory, but he has held a particularly special place in my family’s heart since he bought the Strat from my father in 1963,” she said.
“It took a lot of work but I’m delighted that the campaign to keep the guitar in Irish hands ultimately proved successful and I’m thrilled that it will be put on display for the public to enjoy.
“Rory is a cultural icon in Cork, Ireland and across the world’s rock and blues community, and I’m sure that he will continue to be celebrated for decades to come.”Â
When it was announced last year that Gallagher’s vast collection of instruments was going up for auction, Sheena launched a one-woman campaign to raise public awareness about the cultural importance of Gallagher’s signature 1961 Fender Stratocaster and the potential for it to be sold to an overseas investor and moved abroad.
She launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise a bidding war-chest, she made multiple media appearances, and she organised a fundraising concert in Cork City Hall, which all helped raise awareness of the guitar, the auction, and the need to ensure the guitar remained in Ireland.
Her message hit home not just with the music community, but also with businesses and politicians.
She raised more than €75,000 through the GoFundMe campaign and attended the auction in Bonhams of London last October and was delighted when it was announced that following talks with the Department of Arts and Culture, Gallagher’s signature Stratocaster guitar had been bought by Live Nation Gaiety Ltd, and would be donated to the National Museum of Ireland.
Sheena herself bought a number of other guitars and Gallagher memorabilia, with the intention of putting them on display in a museum in Cork City.
The organisers of the Cork Person of the Year award said Sheena’s service to the people of Cork, through keeping Rory’s guitar in Ireland, was characteristic of the Crowley family, who have a storied history in the city’s music scene.
Her grandfather, Tadhg Ă“ CrualaoĂ, formed the original Crowleys Music Centre on Merchants Quay in 1926 and was famous for his pipe-making and composing skills.
It was here where a 15-year-old Rory Gallagher bought the famous Strat for £100, on credit from Sheena’s father, Michael, who by then was running the business.
Michael moved the store to MacCurtain Street in the 1980s, where he worked alongside Sheena until his death in 2010.
This shop closed in 2013, but Sheena revived the business in 2023 on Friar Street.
Awards organiser Manus O’Callaghan commended Sheena on her efforts.
“It’s fair to say that without Sheena’s tireless campaigning over many months, it’s very possible that the guitar would have been lost to the country, perhaps forever,” he said.
“This award serves as a token of thanks from all Cork people for the tremendous service she has provided in ensuring that Rory’s Strat, the ultimate Cork cultural artefact, stays in the hands of the people.”
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