Courtmacsherry

Around the time of the Norman invasion of Ireland, the major townships in the area were those now known as Timoleague, Lislee, Barryroe and Dunworly. The Normans build a fortified house near the modern site of the Courtmacsherry Hotel.{{cite book |last=O’Dwyer |first=Margaret |date=2022 |title=Principal Houses in the Parish of Barryroe : 18th to 20th Century |location=Cork |publisher=Cork County Council |page=164 |isbn=9781399935203}} Among the Norman settlers were the De Barrys and the Hodnetts; the former built a castle at Timoleague, and the latter settled in Lislee. The Barrys flourished and gave their name to Barryroe, Rathbarry, etc., whereas the Hodnetts "degenerated into mere Irish", one branch changing their name to Mac Seafraidh (son of Geoffrey), subsequently anglicised to MacSherry or McSharry. Although Barrys and Hodnetts still live in the district, there are no MacSherrys.

One, Patrick McSherry (1725-1795) from the County Armagh side of Newry in the south-east of Ulster, a descendant of a Courtmacsherry Hodnett, emigrated to America in 1745 and founded McSherrystown in Adams County, Pennsylvania.[http://www.courtmacsherryhotel.ie/index-8.html Courtmacsherry Hotel history] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006161624/http://www.courtmacsherryhotel.ie/index-8.html |date=2008-10-06 }} {{Cite web |date=1952-09-23 |title=Patrick McSherry |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-gettysburg-times-patrick-mcsherry/12432669/ |access-date=2024-10-25 |website=Newspapers.com |language=en-US}}

In 1760, the First Earl of Shannon, Henry Boyle, inherited the Boyle estate in the region of Barryroe, which included the Courtmacsherry area.{{cite book |last=O’Dwyer |first=Margaret |date=2022 |title=Principal Houses in the Parish of Barryroe : 18th to 20th Century |location=Cork |publisher=Cork County Council |page=171 |isbn=9781399935203}} His grandson Henry Boyle, 3rd Earl of Shannon arranged for the building of Courtmacsherry House in the 1840s, as a family residence. Following the third Earl's death in 1842, his six adult daughters (known as "the Ladies Boyle") were granted the Courtmacsherry estate of 6,000 acres. The last of the third Earl's daughters passed away in 1894, at which point Courtmacsherry estate reverted to the Boyle estate. The Boyle estate was then in the possession of Richard Boyle, 6th Earl of Shannon, and the grandnephew of "the Ladies Boyle". Boyle leased Courtmacsherry House and 10 acres of land to a Bandon businessman, James Brennan, in 1897. Brennan opened Courtmacsherry House as a hotel. In 1923, Robert Henry Boyle, 8th Earl of Shannon (1900–1963) converted this lease into a sale, and since then, Courtmacsherry House has been the location of the Courtmacsherry Hotel.{{cite book |last1=O’Reilly |first1=Eileen |last2=O’Reilly |first2=Eugene |date=1984 |title=Country Inns and Historic Hotels of Ireland |location=New York |publisher=Burt Franklin |pages=40-1 |isbn= 0891022929}}

The Grand Jury Map of County Cork, published in 1811, shows Courtmacsherry as a small cluster of houses near Wood Point.{{cite book |last=O’Dwyer |first=Margaret |date=2022 |title=Principal Houses in the Parish of Barryroe : 18th to 20th Century |location=Cork |publisher=Cork County Council |pages=12-14 |isbn=9781399935203}}

Courtmacsherry is the mildest place in Ireland,{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} with a mean annual temperature of 11^o.{{Cite web |url=https://en.climate-data.org/europe/ireland-219/ |title=Ireland climate: Average Temperature, weather by month, Ireland weather averages - Climate-Data.org |access-date=8 August 2021 |archive-date=8 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808034421/https://en.climate-data.org/europe/ireland-219/ |url-status=live }} The climate zone is Cfb, temperate maritime.

{{Weather box

|location = Courtmacsherry

|metric first = 1

|single line = 1

|Jan high C = 9.0

|Feb high C = 8.8

|Mar high C = 9.5

|Apr high C = 11.0

|May high C = 13.3

|Jun high C = 15.8

|Jul high C = 17.4

|Aug high C = 17.4

|Sep high C = 16.1

|Oct high C = 13.6

|Nov high C = 10.9

|Dec high C = 9.5

|year high C =

|Jan mean C = 7.5

|Feb mean C = 7.2

|Mar mean C = 7.7

|Apr mean C = 9.1

|May mean C = 11.4

|Jun mean C = 14.0

|Jul mean C = 15.6

|Aug mean C = 15.6

|Sep mean C = 14.4

|Oct mean C = 12.2

|Nov mean C = 9.5

|Dec mean C = 8.1

|year mean C =

|Jan low C = 6.0

|Feb low C = 5.6

|Mar low C = 6.0

|Apr low C = 7.2

|May low C = 9.5

|Jun low C = 12.0

|Jul low C = 13.7

|Aug low C = 13.8

|Sep low C = 12.7

|Oct low C = 10.7

|Nov low C = 7.9

|Dec low C = 6.6

|year low C =

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation mm = 109

|Feb precipitation mm = 86

|Mar precipitation mm = 78

|Apr precipitation mm = 78

|May precipitation mm = 76

|Jun precipitation mm = 76

|Jul precipitation mm = 77

|Aug precipitation mm = 79

|Sep precipitation mm = 80

|Oct precipitation mm = 111

|Nov precipitation mm = 103

|Dec precipitation mm = 110

|year precipitation mm =1063

|source 1 = [https://en.climate-data.org/europe/ireland/courtmacsherry/courtmacsherry-107277/ Climate-Data]

}}

The village's main industry consists of commercial and charter angling.{{citation needed|date=August 2016}} A moderately sized tourist industry exists during the summer months. There are several beaches nearby, namely Dunworley Strand, Moloney Strand, Broadstrand and Blind Strand. The village has a hotel and a caravan park, catering mainly for visitors from Cork. About half of this new housing is owner-occupied, the remainder being rented to visitors.{{citation needed|date=August 2016}}

There are several bars and pubs in and around the village. Courtmacsherry is an angling center, and known for its many record catches.{{citation needed|date=June 2017}} There is also a festival at the end of July - the beginning of August. It also hosts a horse race meeting on the strand each year.

{{Main|Courtmacsherry Harbour Lifeboat Station}}

A lifeboat was placed at Courtmacsherry in December 1825, one of the first three in Ireland, by the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS). However, kept out in the open, the lifeboat gradually fell into disrepair, and it is thought that it was no longer in use by 1840. This didn't stop the local Coastguard and fishermen from performing rescues, by means of their own open boats, and gallantry medals were awarded for rescues during this time.{{cite web |title=Courtmacsherry Harbour's station history |url=https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/courtmacsherry-harbour-lifeboat-station/station-history-courtmacsherry |website=Courtmacsherry Harbour Lifeboat Station |publisher=RNLI |access-date=3 August 2024}}{{cite book |last1=Hurley |first1=Micheál |title=Home from the Sea |date=1995 |publisher=Micheál Hurley |isbn=0952600706 |pages=1–133}}

The RNIPLS, founded by Sir William Hillary, Bt., would become the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1854, but it wasn't until 1867 that they established a lifeboat station at Courtmacsherry. A boathouse was constructed, and a 32-foot (10-Oared) self-righting lifeboat, named City of Dublin after the "City of Dublin Lifeboat Fund", arrived on 13 February 1867.{{cite book |last1=Leonard |first1=Richie |last2=Denton |first2=Tony |title=Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024|date=2024 |publisher=Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society |pages=4–132}}

In 1901, the station would receive the Kezia Gwilt (ON 467), a {{cvt|37|ft|m}} self-righting lifeboat. To house the boat, a new boathouse and slipway was built at Barry's Point, some {{convert|5.6|km|mi}} south of Courtmacsherry. On 7 May 1915, the Kezia Gwilt was launched to the aid of ocean liner RMS Lusitania, torpedoed off the Old Head of Kinsale by German submarine U-20. She sank in just 17 minutes, with the loss of 1197 passengers and crew. Kezia Gwilt was the first 'rowed' boat to arrive, but after 6 hours hard rowing, she was too late to rescue any survivors. Lifeboatmen involved on that day included Tim Keohane (father of Antarctic explorer Patsy Keohane), John Murphy, and his son Jerry.{{cite news |title=100 years ago: Lusitania sinks |url=https://rnli.org/magazine/magazine-featured-list/2015/april/100-years-ago-lusitania-sinks |access-date=29 July 2024 |publisher=RNLI |date=2 April 2015}}

In 1928, the station was closed, it is thought due to lack of crew. When the station was reopened in 1929, the new motor-powered lifeboat would be located back at Courtmacsherry, the lifeboat station being renamed Courtmacsherry Harbour.

In January 2009, ultimately unsuccessful efforts were made by Courtmacsherry Lifeboat to save an {{cvt|18|m|ft}} fin whale, which was stranded at Kilbrittain, opposite Courtmacsherry. The whale's remains were preserved and are displayed in Kilbrittain.{{cite web |title=Kilbrittain Whale |url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/kilbrittain-whale |website=Places |publisher=Atlas Obscura |access-date=3 August 2024}}

Courtmacsherry Harbour lifeboat station currently operates 13-45 Val Adnams (ON 1352), a {{Lbc|Shannon}} All-weather lifeboat, on station since 2023.{{cite book |last1=Leonard |first1=Richie |last2=Denton |first2=Tony |title=Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024|date=2024 |publisher=Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society |pages=4–132}}

Courtmacsherry railway station on the Timoleague and Courtmacsherry Extension Light Railway opened on 23 April 1891, closed for passenger traffic on 24 February 1947 and for goods traffic on 10 March 1947, finally closing altogether on 1 April 1961.{{cite web | title=Courtmacsherry station | work=Railscot - Irish Railways | url=http://www.railscot.co.uk/Ireland/Irish_railways.pdf | accessdate=2007-09-23 | format=PDF | archive-date=27 November 2007 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071127054525/http://www.railscot.co.uk/Ireland/Irish_railways.pdf | url-status=live }} The line had three locomotives, Slaney, St. Molaga and Argadeen.

• Patrick Keohane (1879–1950), member of Robert Falcon Scott's Terra Nova Expedition Antarctic expedition of 1910–1913
• Robert Gookin (died 1666/7), Anglo-Irish captain in the English Parliamentary army in Ireland

• List of towns and villages in the Republic of Ireland
• List of RNLI stations

{{Commons category|Courtmacsherry}}

• [http://www.courtmacsherry.ie Local village website]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060409152500/http://www.rnli.org.uk/rnli_near_you/ireland/stations/CourtmacsherryHarbourCork/ RNLI]

{{County Cork}}

Category:Towns and villages in County Cork

Category:Beaches of County Cork