Skibbereen Famine Graveyard

Places to See | Co. Cork, Ireland

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From newspaper accounts of the time, Skibbereen was depicted as being symbolic of the destitution and hardship caused by the failure of the potato crop. Between 8,000 and 10,000 unidentified souls are buried here in the Famine graveyard at Abbeystrewery near Skibbereen, making this one of the most important historical sites in Ireland.

Skibbereen has not forgotten the victims of the Great Famine. A permanent exhibition at the Skibbereen Heritage Centre commemorates that tragic period in Irish history.

The Exhibition Centre at this visitor attraction in Co Cork portrays the Great Famine through the primary source accounts of the time, giving an overview of government policies and how they impacted on the ground. Reports from the relief committee in their attempts to alleviate the suffering of local people are shown alongside reports of how the international community responded to the crisis. The story unfolds in an interactive way through the dramatisation by actors, including Jeremy Irons, of actual events and people of the time.

Skibbereen was the focal point of Ireland’s first National Famine Memorial Day on 17 May 2009. The town was selected as it was in one of the areas worst affected by the Great Famine, with a mass grave at Abbeystrewery containing the remains of between 8,000 and 10,000 people.

Address: Skibbereen Heritage Centre, Old Gas Works, Upper Bridge Street, Skibbereen, Co. Cork, Ireland

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