Nenagh Gaol Has Not Been Closed to Visitors for 100 Years – New Project Concerns a Separate Cell Block
A recent press report [Irish Independent shown here] announcing a new exhibition at Nenagh Gaol could give readers the mistaken impression that the entire historic site has been closed to the public for more than a century. That is not the case.
Nenagh Heritage Centre, situated within the former gaol complex, has welcomed thousands of visitors since 1984. It occupies the former Governor’s House and Gatehouse, where visitors can already explore the site’s history and see the condemned cells associated with the 17 men executed there between 1842 and 1858.
The new proposed development relates specifically to a separate three-storey cell block that has not previously formed part of the public visitor experience. Tipperary County Council’s planning documents describe this building as a former cell block currently used as a council storage area.
The project will conserve and adapt this previously inaccessible block, connect it with the existing Heritage Centre and introduce a new visitor exhibition, featuring interpretation and audio-visual displays.
Therefore, while it may be correct to say that this particular cell block is being opened to visitors for the first time in more than 100 years, it is inaccurate to suggest that Nenagh Gaol or its Heritage Centre has been closed throughout that period.
There is also a difference in the figures being reported. The official eTenders notice gives the estimated contract value as €110,000 excluding VAT, rather than just under €130,000.
Tourists in the area are encouraged to visit this historic venue, which historically housed those sentenced to death by public hanging. See link shown HERE
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