Bantry Museum stands at the heart of Bantry Historical Society’s efforts to preserve and share local heritage
Housed in a distinctive building perched on the rock behind Bantry Fire Station, the museum opened its doors on August 3, 1986 – the result of nearly a decade of dedicated negotiation, research, and artifact sourcing led by key figures such as Eugene O’Sullivan and Patricia Greacen.
Opening Hours
Monday – Friday, June to September
Tuesday – Thursday, October to May
10.30 – 4.30
lunch 1-2 ish
Suggested Donation €2
Inside, visitors encounter an eclectic collection that traces the town’s industrial and domestic history. Highlights include the Coomhola Anvil, forged at the Iron Ore Smelting Works in Mill Little during the early 18th century, alongside more recent items like a woollen blanket from the Bantry Woollen Mills and a Flatley clothes drier manufactured in Newtown in the 1960s.
Beyond these physical objects, the museum serves as BHAS’s reference library and archive, housing shelves filled with handwritten research, maps, newspaper clippings, photographs and typed historical records.
Supported by the local community and staffed by volunteer members with assistance from Bantry Community Employment, Bantry Museum invites everyone to step inside and uncover the people, stories and events that have shaped Bantry through the centuries.
Find us up the steps
behind the
Fire Station on
Bantry Square
P75 TC64
“A true gem! What a beautiful place to visit.”
“WOW! It might be small but it packs a punch with so much fascinating stuff.”
“There are amazing items in here, old pictures, old clothes that the women wore.”
“Really good collection – local material of a disparate nature but fascinating.”
Museum News
You’ll find our full News listing here.
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2014
A selection of some of the many talks, walks, outings and other events that we arranged during 2014.