Fitzgerald's Park (Cork)

 cafe, museum, park, recreation area / ground, green space

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Fitzgerald Park was originally the site of the Cork Exhibition, held in 1902/03, a commercial and industrial showcase for the city economy. The grounds were laid out in a part formal, part romantic design with a large pond and fountain as the focus. After the exhibition the grounds were made over to Cork Corporation to be managed for the benefit of the people of Cork. The Park is named after Edward Fitzgerald who was Lord Mayor of Cork 1901 – 1902 and Chairman of the Exhibition Committee of the Incorporated Cork International Exhibition Association.

The park still retains a mix of formality and romance, with trim geometric flower beds contrasting with winding wooded paths - trees slant over a riverbank that is dotted with haphazard plantings of bulbs and herbaceous perennials, while a pristine rose garden is a riot of colour in June and July. The small Arts and Crafts style building, now known as the President and Lord Mayor’s Pavilion, was originally the ladies’ rest room and tea rooms of the Cork Exhibition. Cork Public Museum is situated in the Park in the house known at the time of the Exhibition as ‘The Shrubbery House’, which served as the administrative Centre for the great undertaking. A wing has been added, in cool modern style, to complement the severe Georgian lines of the building. Tucked in between the Museum and the riverbank is a cafe with indoor and outdoor tables, a perfect place to sit and contemplate life.

Michael Collins Bust, Fitzgerald Park Girl Dancer by Oisín Kelly Fitzgerald Park Sculpture 1 Fitzgerald Park Monument 3 (cropped) Scattered through the park are sculptures of the great characters of Cork life including the War of Independence heroes Michael Collins and Tom Barry. Other sculptures, chosen to enhance or provoke, reflect the output of local and national artists over the past five decades. The children’s playground occupies a relatively large proportion of the park’s 18 acres, and is very well attended throughout the year. Parks Department keeps a permanent depot at Fitzgerald Park, which also services various smaller parks on the South of the City.