Each year it serves up a bounty of projects and people to discover and be inspired by. Here are 2020’s winners:
Heritage on your doorstep
WINNERS
Project: Bringing the 1911 census to Life: Killeshandra, Co Cavan
Organiser: Killeshandra Tidy Towns Heritage Group
About: Organised by Killeshandra Tidy Towns Heritage Group, the Killeshandra census of 1911 is being researched and used to sketch the town as it was. Locals were interviewed about the memories and knowledge they may have gained from their parents and grandparents, and this research was combined with the census to create a picture of how the town looked at the start of the 20th century.
The group is producing sketches, old photographs and census records detailing the houses, shops, public buildings and people who lived in the town. In addition to use of social media, they will create five framed sketches of Killeshandra to inform locals and visitors for many years to come. It’s a valuable resource for learning about our cultural and built heritage and for genealogy research for visitors.
RUNNERS-UP
Project: Cork Jewish heritage virtual walk, Cork city
Organiser: Ruti Lachs
About: Ruti is a Jewish musician who moved to Cork from Kerry three years ago. The Cork Jewish Culture Virtual Walk is a video and webpage exploring some of the history and culture of the Cork Jewish community.
Project: Why Disert is important to me, Co Donegal
Organiser: Disert Heritage Group
About: For Heritage Week 2020, the Disert Heritage Group created a series of short videos exploring the connections people have to Disert, an early medieval monastery reputedly founded in the 6th century by St Colmcille.
Re-learning skills from our heritage
WINNER
Project: Restoration of old Donegal flax wheel, Co Donegal
Organiser: Johnny Shiels
About: A third generation wheel wright, Johnny Shiels has restored a very old flax and wool spinning wheel from the Glenswilly area of Donegal. Now rare and hard to find, the wheels were prone to woodworm and damp, and were generally thrown out. The present owner had kept the wheel safe and it was ripe for restoration.
Shiels grew awareness for the project in the county by attending a local market every Saturday and giving demonstrations. He has built an online following who have watched the progress of the restoration through Facebook and Instagram. Through his membership of Heritage in Schools, he plans to teach students about spinning and weaving through this project and this wheel.
RUNNERS-UP
Project: Traditional sheep farming and sheep dog training, South Co Dublin
Organiser: Donie Anderson, Glenasmole valley sheep farmer
About: Donie Anderson's family have been farming in Glenasmole valley for generations. This video follows him and sheepdogs Jess, Bob, and Toss, as they bring the sheep home from the hills to the farmyard, where he also demonstrates the traditional skill of blade-shearing.
Project: Milltown's heritage food project, Co Galway
Organiser: Milltown Heritage Group
About: Children from Belmont and Milltown national schools were tasked with gathering stories about local food heritage. Tales of farming, fishing, going to the bog, cooking methods, the stations, travelling shops and more all contributed to a booklet and online resource.
The heritage of education
WINNER
Project: Rathmullan goes back to school for Heritage Week, Co Donegal
Organiser: Rathmullan and District Local History Society
About: Chosen to encourage a sense of connection which would involve the whole community, this project is all about the intangible heritage of schooldays. From friendships to sports, games played, songs and lessons remembered as well as the customs and ways of life in school and in the community.
For Heritage Week, the society dedicated its Facebook page to schooldays in three local schools: Robertson N.S. (1815-1996), Carradoan N.S. (1845-1930) and St. Joseph’s N.S. (1902 onwards), posting an outline of each school’s history, and old and not so old photographs to jog people’s memories and to gather memories, stories and comments in return.
RUNNERS-UP
Project: Labasheeda ar scoil – an educational journey, Co Clare
Organiser: Labasheeda Projects Group
About: The project tells the story of education in the Labasheeda area throughout the ages from describing how locals overcame many challenges during the Penal days right up until the present day with the new school which opened in 1975.
Project: Gilson for the 21st century: Learning from our heritage, Co Meath
Organiser: Sue Russell
About: In the 19th century, the Gilson School was created to provide access to education for those who might otherwise not have been able to avail of it. It was a radical idea for its time, and 200 years later that focus is needed more than ever.
Water heritage
WINNER
Project: Explore the shore: Seaweeds of inner Bantry Bay, Co Cork
Organiser: Ellen Hutchins Festival
About: Ellen Hutchins (1785-1815) was Ireland's first female botanist and was born in Ballylickey, West Cork. Seaweeds were one of her specialities and the Ellen Hutchins Festival project involves the production of family-friendly resources enabling people to explore, understand and therefore respect and protect seaweeds and the natural heritage of the shores of inner Bantry Bay.
Now, two introductory seaweed guides to inner Bantry Bay have been produced: a colourful Mini Guide to Seaweeds, which is a free fold-out leaflet aimed at families, as well as a 36-page Introduction to Seaweeds booklet to engage a more adult audience, which expands the topic and includes an historical perspective.
RUNNERS-UP
Project: Back to the past, valuing water in the community, Co Kilkenny
Organiser: Tullahought Community Development Ltd
About: This project explores how past generations accessed water for their day to day requirements in the home and on the farm in the era prior to water schemes and private wells.
Project: Shannon town community wetlands project, Co Clare
Organiser: Shannon Town Community Wetlands
About: Shannon Town Community Wetlands is a community initiative to develop an attractive amenity within the town that promotes biodiversity and enhances the community value of the site, while making it user friendly and accessible.
National Heritage Week 2020 county winners
Co Antrim
- Project: Mapping places exploring "Heritage on our doorsteps" through maps
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Organised by Heritage Hub at Queen's University Belfast, the project offers a way to use maps to orientate ourselves to the past.
Co Carlow
- Project: Education through the ages in Myshall Parish
- Theme: The heritage of education
- About: Myshall Muintir Na Tíre community group focused on the heritage of education in the area and produced a daily video spotlighting an aspect of the rich educational history of the area.
Co Cavan
- Project: Meet the caretakers
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Cavan's Historic Graveyard Network presented three short videos of the people who look after, protect, research and promote their local historic graveyards in the county, and who are doing invaluable work.
Co Clare
- Project: Clarecastle on film in the 1950s
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Clarecastle and Ballyea Heritage and Wildlife group discovered and restored old cine-film taken in Clarecastle in the 1950s, which shows aspects of the village that have changed and, in particular, the unloading of ships at Clarecastle Quay.
Cork City
- Project: Cork Jewish heritage virtual walk
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: At its height, in around 1915, the Cork Jewish community had about 450 members. Most of these were from families who had left Lithuania in search of a better life. The Cork synagogue opened its doors in 1891, and closed in 2016.
Co Cork
- Project: A decade of celebrating heritage of Bantry
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: The Bantry Historical and Archaeological Society looked back at all the events they have organised over the past eleven years for National Heritage Week and showcased their work and the rich heritage of the Bantry area to new audiences.
Co Derry
- Project: Horrible histories of Lough Neagh
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Exploring the intangible culture of the area around Lough Neagh, from medieval times to the modern day, the project uses tales from the Middle Ages, place and personal names, historical records and orally collected traditions.
Co Down
- Project: Uncovering monuments in the Ulster landscape
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: This project highlights the work of the Ulster Archaeological Society and its members in researching and understanding monuments in the landscape to allow the public to learn more.
Co Donegal
- Project: Stories in our ... lockdown project
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Donegal G.A.P. Heritage and History Group responded to pandemic restrictions by posting objects, places or events relating to culture and heritage on their Facebook page (Donegal GAP Heritage), to connect people to their local history.
Dublin City
- Project: Wordsteps – the Grand Canal, Dublin
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: A sound art work by Camilla Fanning designed to be listened to via headphones. As you walk the canal, you hear the words, thoughts and stories from from past and present voices.
Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
- Project: Airfield Dromartin Jersey herd – butter making
- Theme: Relearning skills from our heritage
- About: Airfield Estate has been home to the award winning Dromartin Jersey herd for over a century. Join Airfield's team and explore the heritage of their famous cows.
Fingal
- Project: Snapshots of Fingal's past
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: This heritage project from Fingal Co Council takes the form of an online exhibition featuring the stories of people, places, sports and traditions submitted by the people of Fingal.
Dublin South
- Project: Traditional sheep farming and sheepdog training
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: A video presenting an element of intangible cultural heritage, using sheepdogs to manage sheep in the hills above Tallaght. It is remarkable that these skills and this way of life still exists so close to the urban edge of Dublin city.
Co Galway
- Project: Milltown's heritage food project
- Theme: The heritage of education
- About: Milltown Heritage Group got local school children to gather family stories and recipes on local food heritage, some of which go back generations. The National Folklore Collection accepted these into their archive.
Galway City
- Project: Exploring mammals in Merlin Woods
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Using a variety of techniques, Ruth Hanniffy,Vincent Wildlife Trust, brings us on a journey around Merlin Woods exploring the varying habitats needed by our local mammals.
Co Fermanagh
- Project: Remembering the landscape – Cuilcagh to Cleenish: A great place
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: The project is a short celebratory film showcasing the area's landscape and heritage from Cuilcagh mountain to the shores of Upper Lough Erne, bringing it to the attention of a wider audience.
Co Kerry
- Project: Young Explorer with Neil Hyland
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: 12-year-old Neil Hyland explores his local area of Caherdaniel, Co Kerry. Delivered online through his website and social media channels, the Young Explorer project visits and uncovers the local history of his area.
Co Kildare
- Project: The Irish draught horse yesterday and today
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Discover the story of the Irish draught horse and its journey from being the mainstay on small farms, travel and military, to its present role as a leisure horse and ambassador for Ireland.
Co Kilkenny
- Project: Back to the past, valuing water in the community
- Theme: Relearning skills from our heritage
- About: Tullahought Community Development's project explores how past generations accessed water in the home and on the farm in an era prior to water schemes and private wells.
Co Laois
- Project: Killabban monastic site
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Killabban Monastery Restoration Committee set out to involve the local community in the recognition of a unique monastic site, which, prior to 2012 lay derelict and in ruins.
Co Leitrim
- Project: Back to the future through memories and songs
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Due to lockdown life, Fionnuala Maxwell wanted to bridge the digital divide for cocooning citizens. She introduced Zoom conversations as a way to tell stories of growing up in rural Ireland and the changes people have witnessed from the 1930s.
Co Limerick
- Project: An audio-visual tour of Knockfierna
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Knockfierna Heritage Society created a virtual walking tour of Knockfierna to provide an overview of its rich historical and cultural importance.
Co Longford
- Project: Rath Mhuire Men's Club – let me tell you!
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: 17 men in the club used local knowledge and skills to collect objects from the past and record their knowledge to create a presentation of old and unusual objects, implements and artefacts of bygone times.
Co Louth
- Project: A glimpse behind the shopfront
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Carlingford Lough Heritage Trust exhibited 40 photographs of shops and businesses from the past, to tell the story of the role of the shop and local business in the life of the small rural town from the end of the 19th century up to the 1970s.
Co Mayo
- Project: Mulranny down through the decades
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Collecting photos and objects from people from their 20s to their 80s resulted in a free exhibition at Mulranny Community Centre during Heritage Week, as well as on the Mulranny Facebook page where new photos are uploaded every week.
Co Meath
- Project: Meath Travellers workshop photo exhibition, pack and DVD
- Theme: The heritage of education
- About: The exhibition provided visitors with an opportunity to look into the lives of Travellers over the past six decades, their struggles and achievements. A Traveller Cultural Information Pack was also launched.
Co Meath
- Project: Boyne Currach Heritage Group
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: An online presentation featuring projects that the Boyne Currach Heritage Group has facilitated or participated in over the last few years, accompanied by fiddle music from Athena Tergis.
Co Monaghan
- Project: Sharing school and church memories across the generations
- Theme: The heritage of education
- About: St. Salvator's church youth interviewed their grandparents or older members of family and recorded their early memories of school and church. It is vital as many locations mentioned have closed as the Church of Ireland population declines.
Co Offaly
- Project: Lighting up the night
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Birr Vintage Week and Arts Festival celebrated the built environment of the heritage town of Birr, breathed life into the buildings and stories of the town, and encouraged the community to connect with the architecture and its narrative.
Co Roscommon
- Projects: Back to the drawing board with a teacher from Kilteevan, Remembering teachers who taught in Kilteevan schools from their memorials, and Bringing Kilteevan Schools Folklore Collection to the parish audience
- Theme: The heritage of education
- About: Kilteevan Graveyard Committee created three interconnected projects tracing the family history of a teacher who was born in Kilteevan, looking at teachers who taught in parish schools and who are named in Kilteevan graveyard, plus the contribution to the National Folklore Collection 1937-1938.
Co Sligo
- Project: The Rosses Point coastal way project
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: A walking route marked by a series of nine interpretive panels located along the 2km of coastal paths of Rosses Point. The way encourages the exploration and enjoyment of the natural, historical and cultural heritage of this beautiful area.
Co Tipperary
- Project: A harvest knot for lughnasa
- Theme: Relearning skills from our heritage
- About: Lughnasa is traditionally marked by communities working together to bring in the harvest. A time of celebration, fairs, dancing and family gatherings. At Nenagh Arts Centre, along with the making of the straw cailleach, harvest knots and love favours were created.
Co Tyrone
- Project: If stones could speak – The archaeological landscape of Tyrone
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: A new exhibition at the Alley Theatre, Strabane, it showcases ancient monuments such as court tombs, standing stones accompanied by funerary bowls and flint which dots the landscape of this area. A key item on display is an ancient log boat from Clady.
Co Waterford
- Project: Knockboy ogham stones
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: Knockboy is a unique and intriguing site which has seven ogham stones, six of which are built into the 14th-century church. The church and ogham stones have also been recorded in 3D by Simon Dowling and have been added to the Ogham in 3D website.
Co Westmeath
- Project: Creating the voices of generations gone
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: The Mount Temple Baylin Heritage Group created a video looking at the fading skills of the smith, through interviews with Ernie Hatton and his brother George, who learned from their father in their smithy close to Moydrum Castle.
Co Wexford
- Project: Courtown Woods – our heritage
- Theme: Relearning skills from our heritage
- About: Local Seanchai Lorraine from Gallivanting.ie explores the wonders of Courtown Woods. A short film examines how different civilisations have interacted with these landscapes throughout the ages, and explores how we can learn from the wisdom of our ancestors.
Co Wicklow
- Project: Glendalough Heritage Forum: short films, website, promoting heritage
- Theme: Heritage at your doorstep
- About: The group has commissioned short films to promote understanding of the area's cultural heritage.