Trade and Industry in the 18th and 19th Centuries
Cork city’s growth in the eighteenth century was based on the growth of trade into the city and the strength of the city’s butter market and textile trade in particular. By the end of that century 50% of all Irish butter exports came from Cork. The figure for beef was even higher. That trade went into decline after the conclusion of the Napoleonic wars, and the fall in prices that followed. In an attempt to revive the city’s fortunes in the aftermath of the Great Famine, an international exhibition was held in Cork in 1852.
The Cork International Exhibition, 1902–1903
A similar effort was made with the Cork International Exhibition in 1902–1903. The main site was a park on the western side of the city. The industrial and agricultural exhibits were located on what is now the U.C.C. sports ground, bounded by the River Lee on one side and the railway and tramway system on the other. The exhibition featured an industrial hall, a machinery hall, an art gallery, a Canadian pavilion, and various agricultural exhibits and stands. The amusement park included a skating rink, a shooting gallery, and an aquarium.
Agriculture and Rural Employment
The prominence of agriculture at the exhibition reflected its central role in Cork’s economy. Outside the city, agriculture was the main employer of men. Of the 100,181 men with a ‘specified occupation’, 58,411 were classified as being of the ‘agricultural class’. There were still thousands of agricultural labourers (see return for Denis Doody of Queenstown, with five agricultural labourers in the household, but just as in the rest of rural Ireland, this class was dwindling steadily towards extinction. There were people working as market gardeners (see William O’Brien of Blackrock) but it was farmers (see John Love, near Schull) who dominated life in much of rural Cork, as only 30,358 men are designated as being of the industrial class.
Trades and Urban Development
In towns across Cork, there were, however, drapers (see Joseph Barry in Kinsale), bootmakers (see Seoirse de Bulman in Fermoy) and other tradesmen. Attempts to overcome more than a century of flooding in Douglas had led to drainage schemes on the Tramore and Trabeg rivers. This was led by a group of local people, including a solicitor, Augustus Graham Goold, with a retired army officer William Newenham as its chairman.
Industry and women’s work in Cork city
The census recorded that the industrial class of 12,609 made up more than half of the 22,420 men with a specified occupation in Cork city (see boarding house on Wandesford Street in Cork city full of shoemakers, brewery workers, clerks, egg packers, labourers, tailors and tram conductors). Industry was also the largest employer of women, with 4,636 of the 10,018 women with specified occupations working in this sector. There were also governesses (see Gladys Williams at Corbally) and nurses (see Isabel MacBeath at Queenstown). In rural areas, domestic service was the most common occupation for women, accounting for 11,681 of those with specified occupations.
Government and Military Employment
Government roles provided significant employment in Cork. There were local government employees (see Auditor John More O’Ferrall at Shrewsbury Villas in Cork city) and magistrates (see Matthew Ambrose at Queenstown). The British Army had a strong presence, with personnel stationed at Haulbowline in Queenstown and others were stationed on Spike Island. Soldiers (see Marriot Benson in Cork city) and reservists (see Captain De Berry in Ballyhay) lived throughout the county.
Maritime Employment and the Fishing Industry
The sea offered many forms of employment (see marine engineer William Barker at Queenstown) to the people of Cork. Along the coast, people lived on ships (see Michael Halley at Dungarvan), worked for the coast guard (see Richard Tucker at Rockisland) or were involved in the mackerel industry in Baltimore (see return for Industrial School), though this was in decline by 1911. The industry’s revival in the 1870s had led to the establishment of a Fishery School in 1887, which by 1891 housed 162 residents: 10 staff and 152 boys.
Queenstown: Port, Emigration, and Tragedy
The port at Queenstown (renamed Cobh in 1922) was central to emigration to America between the Great Famine and 1950. Queenstown (see shipbuilder Oliver Piper) was also the last berthing place of the Titanic, which sank on its maiden voyage to New York in 1912. Nora O’Leary of Annahala, near Macroom, an 18-year-old farmer’s daughter. She was on her way to live with her sister, Katie O’Leary in New York. who later returned to Ireland and married Tom O’Herlihy of Ballydesmond.
Queenstown was to be dramatically changed during the Great War by the influx of thousands of British and American navy During the Great War, Queenstown was transformed by the arrival of thousands of British and American navy personnel (see Royal Navy ship’s crew at Haulbowline), who built hangars and even skating rinks.
Admiral Lewis Bayly and Bishop of Cloyne, Robert Browne friendship led to the delivery of a 42-bell carillon for the new cathedral. Tragedy struck when the Lusitania was torpedoed on 7 May 1915 en route to Queenstown. Many of the 1,198 who died were returning Irish emigrants. Fishermen from Kinsale rescued some survivors. A monument was later erected in Casement Square.
Tourism and Transport
Cork had a growing tourism industry, with prominent hotels such as Keenan’s and the Marine Hotel in Glandore. Rail transport was vital to tourism’s development. Train lines ran from five Cork stations. The largest, the Great Southern and Western Station on Lower Glanmire Road, connected to Dublin, Queenstown, Killarney, Waterford, and Rosslare. Other stations—Albert Quay, Albert Street, Capwell, and Western Road—served destinations like Bandon, Glengariff, Macroom, Coachford, and Blarney. Tramways (see tramway labourer Wlliam Hayes) connected the city to Douglas, Ballintemple, Blackrock, and Sunday’s Well.