Kilmainham Gaol volunteers honoured

A SPECIAL reception for surviving members of the Kilmainham Gaol Restoration Society and their families was held in the newly-adapted visitor centre in the former courthouse located next door last week.

The new Kilmainham Gaol Museum Visitor Centre was officially opened by President Michael D Higgins as one of the seven ‘Permanent Reminders’ to mark the centenary of 1916.

The Kilmainham Gaol Restoration Society was the volunteer group who, by their work, saved the Gaol from dereliction in the 1960s.

Simon Harris, Minister of State with special responsibility for the Office of Public Works, hosted the reception for surviving members of the Kilmainham Gaol Restoration Society and their families.

“I am really happy to acknowledge the Restoration Society’s role in saving the historic Gaol from ruin,” the Minister said. “There are three major eras in the recent history of Kilmainham Gaol.

“The Restoration Society first took over the Gaol in 1960 and, with the hard work of many volunteers, saved it from dereliction and opened it up to visitors.”

In 1986, the society handed it over to the State and the Office of Public Works took it into their care and developed it as a major tourism attraction.

“Now, in 2016, we have started the third era of the Gaol in opening up the wonderful new facilities in the Courthouse as a Permanent Reminder of the 1916 Rising,” Minister Harris added. “However, none of this would have been at all possible without the volunteers who, in the first instance, saved this historic building and paved the way for its designation as a National Monument and the wonderful attraction we have today.”

The Minister was accompanied at the event by the Kilmainham Gaol Board of Visitors, who were created following the handover to the State in 1986 and who are the inheritors of the tradition of the Restoration Society.

Damien Cassidy, the Chairman of the Board, said: “We are pleased that the Minister and the Government have recognised the huge contribution of the restoration volunteers in saving the Gaol. A huge amount of work was undertaken over the two and a half decades after 1960. Many of those volunteers are, sadly, no longer with us but I am delighted that many remain and their family members are able to join us in the celebration of the wonderful new facilities created to mark the 2016 anniversary.”