Corkbeg Island
| Corkbeg Island | |
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| Location: | 51°49’41"N, 8°15’1"W |
| Grid reference: | W828640 |
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Corkbeg Island lies on the south-east shore of Cork Harbour, near the mouth of the harbour, in the east of County Cork. It is a small island, tied to the shore by a short, manmade causeway, and entirely taken up by the storage tanks of the Whitegate Oil Refinery.
The oil refinery fills the landscape opposite the island, making it far from the idyllic spot it once appeared but instead a cruel industrial landscape. Seven of the refinery's vast oil storage tanks are on the island, with a jetty extending into the waters of the harbour.
Once though, this little island was an idyllic retreat on which stood a country a mansion, then a country house hotel, the Corkbeg Island Hotel, built in the Victorian period and which attracted higher-class custom until the 1950s.
History
In the Middle Ages a castle stood on Corkbeg, built in 1396 by the Cauntons or Condons. The remains of the castle could still be seen until industry swallowed the island in the 20th century
The Fitzgerald family owned the island for some centuries, and had a country house here. In 1820, the house was demolished by Robert Fitzgerald and replaced by a new mansion. After his son Penrose died in 1918, the house was converted into a luxury hotel, which was in time purchased by Major Colan and his wife.
Colan sold the hotel and island in 1955. The house was demolished and the oil refinery took over the island, leaving little trace of what went before.
References
- Islands of Ireland: 'Tanks' for the memories Corkbeg: Dan McCarthy in The Irish Examiner, 13 October 2019
- Corcaigh Bheag / Corkbeg: Placenames Database of Ireland