Horse Island, County Cork
| Horse Island Irish: Oileán na gCapall | |
| Location | |
|
| |
| Location: | 51°30’58"N, 9°28’5"W |
| Grid reference: | V982302 |
| Area: | 157 acres |
| Data | |
| Population: | 1 (2022) |
Horse Island is a small, inhabited island in Roaringwater Bay in County Cork, off the coast of Schull parish. It is one of this islands which are known as Carbery's Hundred Isles. No ferry service operates to and from the island; however, there is a pier, a heliport and a road on the island.
The island is privately owned and in 2018 was offered for sale for the price of €6,750,000. The property ultimately sold for a price of €5,500,000 to a European ultra high-net-worth individual in July 2020. Due to the pandemic, the buyer was not allowed to tour the island but viewed a video tour about its amenities.[1]
History
In the 19th century, a copper mine was operated[2] on the 157 acre island by West Cork Mining Company, owned most recently by West Cork Mining Company, employing approximately 100 miners at one time. The mine started operating in 1820 and closed in 1874.[3][4] At its peak in 1841, the island's population was 137. The last permanent resident, Paddy McCarthy, left Horse Island in 1965. In his time, there were only five families on the island.[5][6] Willie Harcourt-Cooze's father bought Horse Island, where he started farming and living a self-sufficient life.[7]
For some years, the island was owned by Gert Kölbel, a wealthy German, who renovated a few of the buildings in the 1980s. It was sold to financier Adrian Fitzgibbon and wife Deborah in 2007. In less than a year, they turned a barn into the main house.[8] By the time they listed it for sale in 2018, "The island has seven houses, including a six-bedroom main home, plus a pier, helipad, gym, tennis court ... its own electricity, water and sewage systems". Another source added that the island also included "six guesthouses and guest cottages", three diesel generators, wind turbines" and pipes to an underwater aquifer for drinking water.
In 2014, an attempt had been made by the Fitzgibbon family to set up an Irish whiskey distillery and visitor centre on the island, but planning permission was refused by An Bord Pleanála. The couple had also attempted to raise Wagyu cattle but that plan did not work successfully.[9] The island still had a "main cattle shed, an implement shed [and a] workshop" as of 2019.[10]
As of June 2018, the island had a permanent caretaker.[11]
References
- ↑ Barker, Tommy. "West Cork island bought for €5.5 million as a pandemic times sanctuary". https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/property/west-cork-island-bought-for-55-million-as-a-pandemic-times-sanctuary-1010608.html. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ↑ Photograph with names of Miners, Horse Island Mine
- ↑ An island for you alone or with 50 friends
- ↑ UK Genealogy Archives
- ↑ You can own a 157-acre island in West Cork for a cool €6.75 million
- ↑ MacCarthy, Dan (19 March 2018). "Islands of Ireland: Mine of information on Horse Island". Irish Examiner. https://www.irishexaminer.com/property/homeandoutdoors/arid-30833157.html. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
- ↑ "Willie Harcourt-Cooze interview: Spilling the beans". The Scotsman. 1 March 2009. http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/features/Willie-HarcourtCooze-interview-Spilling-the.5090483.jp. Retrieved 30 July 2009.
- ↑ An island for you alone or with 50 friends
- ↑ You can own a 157-acre island in West Cork for a cool €6.75 million
- ↑ Seven-house West Cork island on market for $7.5m offers utter tranquility
- ↑ You can own a 157-acre island in West Cork for a cool €6.75 million
- Oileán na gCapall / Horse Island: Placenames Database of Ireland
| Carbery's Hundred Isles in County Cork |
|---|
|
Cape Clear Island • Sherkin Island • Long Island • Castle Island • Carthy's Islands • Horse Island • West Skeam Island • East Skeam Island • Heir Island • Calves Island (West, Middle, East) • Spanish Island • Ringarogy Island • Goat Island (Beg/Mór) • Rabbit Island |