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Cobh

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51°51′N 8°18′W / 51.850°N 8.300°W / 51.850; -8.300

Template:Infobox Irish Place

The waterfront at Cobh

Cobh Irish: An Cóbh. Pronounced "cove" and derived from English. Cobh is a seaport on the south coast of Ireland, in County Cork, Republic of Ireland.

The locality, which had had several different Irish-language names, was first referred to as Cove ("The Cove of Cork") in 1750. It was renamed Queenstown in 1849 to commemorate a visit by Queen Victoria and so remained until the name Cobh (closer to the Irish spelling) was restored in 1922 with the foundation of the Irish Free State.

Cobh is located on the south shore of the Great Island in Cork Harbour, (reputed to be the second largest natural harbour in the world), on slopes overlooking the harbour. On its highest point stands the Cobh Cathedral, St. Colman's, seat of the diocese of Cloyne.

History of Cobh port

Statue on the waterfront of Annie Moore and her brothers. Annie Moore was the first person to be admitted to the United States of America through the new immigration centre at Ellis Island, New York on 1 January, 1892.

One of the major transatlantic Irish ports, Cobh was the departure point for 2.5 million of the six million Irish people who emigrated to North America between 1848 and 1950. On 11 April 1912 Queenstown was the final port of call for the RMS Titanic as she set out across the Atlantic on her ill-fated maiden voyage. Local lore has it that a Titanic crew member John Coffey, a native of Queenstown, jumped ship although there is no record of him on the crew list. Seven lucky passengers also disembarked, although 113 boarded, many of whom drowned.

The original pier (as it appeared in 2007) that passengers used to board ferries to get to the Titanic—which was anchored outside Cobh harbor.

Several other notable ships are associated with the town:

  • The first steamship to sail from Ireland to England left Cobh in 1821
  • The RMS Lusitania was sunk by a German U-Boat off the Old Head of Kinsale while en route to Liverpool in on May 7, 1915. The survivors were brought to the town of Cobh, and over one hundred lie buried in the Old Church Cemetery about a mile north of the town.

During World War I, Queenstown was a naval base for British and American destroyers operating against U-boats that preyed upon merchant vessels in the area. The first division of American destroyers arrived in May 1917, and the sailors who served on those vessels were the first American servicemen in combat duty in the war. When the convoy arrived in port, after a rough passage in what were little more than open boats, they were met with a great crowd of sailors and townspeople, thankful for help in stopping the U-boats that threatened to starve the British out of the war. The impatient British Commodore met the captain of the American flagship when he jumped onto the dock, and asked him how soon the weather-beaten American ships could be put to use. "We're ready now, sir!" he answered, and was widely quoted. Under the terms of the Anglo-Irish Treaty 1921 the port remained a UK sovereign base, see Treaty Port. Along with the other Treaty ports it was handed over to the government of the Irish Free State in 1938.

The Camber

Demography

The population of the Cobh area has increased greatly in recent times with large new housing estates on the outskirts of the town, especially around Rushbrooke. The town boundary has not reflected these changes. According to the 2006 Census, the combined population of Cobh and Great Island was 12,887. The former farmlands of Cobh have been extensively developed in recent years, with a large amount of housing estates being built in areas such as Rushbrooke and Carrignafoy. Cobh is gradually becoming a satellite town to the nearby Cork City.

Cathedral of St. Colman

Economy

  • Haulbowline Island which faces Cobh town is the headquarters of the Irish Naval Service, formerly a British naval station.
  • Cobh was home to Ireland's only steelworks, the former state-owned Irish Steel works which was closed by its buyer, Ispat International, in 2001 [1].
  • Tourism is a huge employer in Cobh, with large cruise liners stopping at Cobh each summer.
  • Another important employer in Cobh had been the Dutch owned Verolme Cork Dockyard, in Rushbrooke. It opened in 1960 and ceased operations in the mid-1980s. In 1981 the Lenister was built at Verolme for service on the Dublin – Holyhead route [2] The last ship built at Verolme was the Irish navy's Eithne [3]. Some ship repair work is stilled carried atRushbrooke using the impressive drydock and other facilities.

Transport and communications

Cobh today

Leisure and commercial activities have improved in recent years:

  • New Supermarkets and Shopping Centres have been developed due to an influx in population.
  • The re-development of the derelict Cobh Leisure Centre and the Plateau Youth Centre.
  • There are also plans to build a new marina in front of the town.

Arts and Festivals

  • The main hub for the arts in Cobh is the Sirius Arts Centre located on the waterfront. It hosts many cultural events both in house and around Cobh.
  • The Cobh Peoples Regatta is held every year around August. It is the cultural highlight of the Summer. The event traditionally includes on-stage performances from local musicians and performers as well as a Cobh pageant to decide the Queen of Cobh for the coming year. The festival ends every year with a fireworks display over the Harbour at midnight.

People

Famous Cobh people include the following:-

Sport

  • Cobh's most successful football team is Cobh Ramblers, the club where Roy Keane (arguably the best European midfielder of recent times) made his name and earned a transfer to English side Nottingham Forest, as well as were current Irish international footballer and Manchester City midfielder Stephen Ireland started his career.
  • Cobh is also home to Ireland's most successful athlete Sonia O'Sullivan, an Olympic Games Silver Medal-winning athlete.

Twin towns

See also

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

References

  1. ^ "Cobh station" (PDF). Railscot - Irish Railways. Retrieved 2007-08-31.
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