Celebrate local living heritage during National Heritage Week

National Heritage Week takes place nationwide from Saturday, 12th to Sunday, 20th of August. A colourful range of events and projects celebrating all aspects of our heritage will take place across the country. Communities, families, holidaymakers and people of all ages and backgrounds are encouraged to get out and explore their heritage in a fun and educational manner.

Community groups, individuals and Roscommon County Council have organised over 40 events and projects all around the county to celebrate the week. Events are taking place in Ardcarne, Athleague, Ballintubber, Boyle, and Castlerea. There are also an extensive range of other events taking place in locations such as Dangan, Elphin, Frenchpark, Keadue, Lecarrow, Lough

12th - 20th August 2023

Key Forest and Activity Park, Monksland, Strokestown, Rahara, Roscommon, Rathcroghan, Tulsk and Moore. See page 15 for a full listing of all events during National Heritage Week in Roscommon.

The theme of this year’s National Heritage Week is ‘Living Heritage’ which alludes to the practices, knowledge and skills that have been passed from one generation to the next, and are still in use today. As such, many events and projects will focus on the keeping alive of these crafts and skills.

There are events for all ages and interests, including kids’ events, guided tours, nature walks, historic walks, artefact displays, history talks, GAA history, family history, sites and monuments tours, farming and archaeology, storytelling, local history and traditions and exhibitions.

Heritage Officer with Roscom- mon County Council Nollaig Feeney encourages communities to engage and support their local events as a means of cherishing the rich seam of heritage and history contained within communities in County Roscommon.

“National Heritage Week is a celebration of our living heritage and the value that people and communities all around the county place on our built, natural and cultural heritage. It’s a wonderful opportunity to get out and about during the week and see the great projects being carried out by community groups all around the county”, said Nollaig Feeney, Roscommon County Council Heritage Officer.

“Search www.heritageweek. ie for details of all events and digital projects nationwide. You can filter your search by county, date or event type. Make sure you don’t miss any events –simply click on the heart icon beside your favourite events and click on ‘My Events Trail’ to create your own National Heritage Week events trail.

“One can also print, email or share their events trail on Face- book and Twitter, so one won’t miss their favourite events”, continued Nollaig.

Roscommon County Council supports National Heritage Week as an action of County Roscommon Heritage Plan. Follow #heritageweek2023 on social media.

12th - 20th August 2023 Roscommon Events

Sat 12th 10am & 12pm A talk on the Gravestones in Ardcarne Old Graveyard, near Boyle, by Mary B. Timoney Archaeologist

10am Family History Clinic with Martin Curley

10am –2pm Heritage Themed Kids Scavenger Hunt 10am - 2pm at Boyle Courtyard Market

11am –

Dig It - Archaeology for Kids

11am Building Biodiversity in a Veggie Garden in Boyle Further Education & Training Centre

2pm ‘Boyle Historic Walking Tour’ with Local Historian Tony Conboy

2-5pm O'Kelly Country and its history - an informal afternoon of talks on the O’Kelly clan of Ui Mhaine

9pm Bat Talk in Roscommon Castle with ecologist David Fallon

Sun 13th 10-4pm FREE tours of Douglas Hyde Interpretative Centre in Portahard Church - tells the life story of Ireland’s first president Dr. Douglas Hyde (1860-1949) and his contribution to modern Ireland

Courtyard Market

Key Forest Park Boyle

F45 HD56

Mon 14th 11-4pm FREE Self-Guided Tour of King House Interpretative Galleries & Museum King House, Boyle

11-4pm The Big Dig, Monksland – Archaeology for Kids Monksland

12pm Safeguarding Strokestown Park House - special tour by the curator focusing on measures to preserve the House and its Artefacts

12- 4pm Show and Tell Week with our Walled Garden Volunteers

7.30pm Castles in Communities Ballintubber – talk by Andrew Beard on the 2023 archaeology dig and surveying at Ballintober castle & surrounding areas

Tues 15th 11am Nature Walk with Michael Bell in Athleague

12- 4pm Show and Tell Week with our Walled Garden Volunteers

3pm Victorian Photography at Strokestown Park House - talk by William Fagan from the Photo Museum Ireland, followed by a tour of the rare and intact Victorian Darkroom

Strokestown Park

Strokestown Park

Old Schoolhouse

Ballintubber

Riverside Centre

Strokestown Park

Strokestown Park

7pm Roscommon Voices from the American Civil War online talk by Damian Shiels, Research Fellow at Northumbria University Online

7pm Nature Walk with Michael Bell in Knockranny Wood, near Keadue

Wed 16th

Knockranny Wood, Keadue

9:30am Elphin 1901-02-03-04-05: Match reports on the five-in-a-row champions talk & launch of booklet Online

12- 4pm Show and Tell Week with our Walled Garden Volunteers

2pm Recent Revelations at the Carrowkeel Passage Tomb Complex: Results of Scientific Research over the Last 10 Years - talk by archaeologist Sam Moore

Strokestown Park

King House, Boyle

7pm The O'Conor Don: Landlordism, Liberal Catholicism and Unionism in Nineteenth-Century Ireland Online

7.30pm Monksland’s Heritage Night - an evening of music, stories, craic agus Ceol

Athlone Springs Hotel

8:30pm Ballaghcullia, Ballinagare: A Middle Bronze Age settlement and cremation cemetery in Co. Roscommon - Talk Rathcroghan Visitor Centre

Thurs 17th 12- 4pm Show and Tell Week with our Walled Garden Volunteers

2-4pm Tour of Ryefield Barn Church

5pm

Strokestown Park

Ryefield, Elphin

Aleen Cust & the Byrnes of Araghty: High Achievers in Veterinary & Politics - talk by Elizabeth Clayton & Albert Siggins Roscommon Library

6:30pm Writing Gives You Wings: A family Search Success Story - interactive session with J.P. Rodgers

Strokestown Library

7pm Guided tour of Keadue archaeological sites with Dr. Kieran O’Conor - meet at Knockranny Wood car park Keadue

Fri 18th 9:30am Farming Rathcroghan Conference: Preserving the Past-Protecting the Future – speakers & stakeholders from the project manager, government departments, members of European union and heritage & conservation experts

11.30am & 3pm

Úna Bhán - A Telling of the Story’ hear a traditional telling of a local traditional story at 11.30am and 3pm in Úna Bhán Tourism Co-Operative, in the grounds of King House, Boyle, suitable for children and adults

7pm Celebrating Lacken House & The McDonnell Family, Rahara- an evening of talks & more

7pm Stone Quarrying Heritage during the 1800’s and 1900’s in Ireland including reference to the unique limestone bedrock still being quarried in Lecarrow - demonstration of lime mortar building and pointing of walls at 7pm followed by talk by Eamon Leonard M.A. in local history at 8pm.

Rathcroghan Visitor Centre

Úna Bhán Tourism, Boyle

Lacken House, Rahara

St. Johns Community Centre, Lecarrow

Sat 19th 10am Willow Weaving Workshop - Weave a Willow Vase with the Helena Golden, the Willow Woman King House, Boyle

10.30 –

1.30pm

‘Market Traditions - Courtyard Market Boyle’ a special "Heritage Stall" at the regular Boyle Courtyard Marketfascinating talks and eye-catching demonstrations

Boyle Courtyard Market

11am A Guided Farm Walk of Rathmore, Rathcroghan by Farming Rathcroghan EIP community archaeologist Kate Robb Rathcroghan Work Hub/ Rathcroghan School

2pm Boyle Historic Walking Tour with Local Historian Tony Conboy Boyle Craft Shop

2pm Potato People - A Story of the Irish Famine in Clay - live audience with sculptor Joe McCaul

2pm Ballydangan Bog Red Grouse Project presentation and guided visit to bog. Meet at Moore Hall.

Strokestown Park

Ballydangan, Athlone

4pm The Parish of Moore, "Glimpses into the Past", historic map board, presentation & film. Meet at Moore Hall. Ballydangan, Athlone

7pm The Wrought Iron Farm Gate: Our Heritage-Our History-Our Responsibility

8:30pm The Doon of Drumsna – a talk by local Historian Mary Butler in the Parish Community Centre

Sun 20th 3pm Roscommon Holy Wells Project – talk by Tamlyn McHugh of Fadó Archaeology

Rathcroghan Work Hub/ Rathcroghan School

Dangan, Kilmore

Ogulla Well, Tulsk

6-8pm Tour of Ryefield Barn Church Ryefield, Elphin

All week 12-4pm Visit Elphin Windmill - fully restored 18th century windmill.

All Week Exhibition - Aleen Cust: Trailblazer in Roscommon Library

All Week Exhibition - Paul Strzelecki in Roscommon Library

All Week Exhibition - The George Reynolds Collection in Strokestown Library

All week Exhibition - Staying on Track: 25 Years of Castlerea Railway Museum in Castlerea Library

Supported by Roscommon County Council as an action of County Roscommon Heritage Plan

Elphin Windmill

Roscommon Library

Roscommon Library

Strokestown Library

Castlerea Library