21st August 2025

Celebrating Letterkenny's Heritage in Heritage Week

Letterkenny Community Heritage Group, in association with Letterkenny Toastmasters, hosted a "A Walk Around Letterkeny" on Monday 18th August as part of Heritage Week. There were four different stops with different aspects of Letterkenny's history and heritage discussed. A large crowd of about fifty people, gathered at Letterkenny Museum, formerly the workhouse, for the first of the stops. Jeremy Worth from the Toastmasters gave an account of what life was like in the workhouse in the 1800s, how the place was run and how the building has been used since the workhouse closed down in the 1920s.The tour then proceeded up the steps beside the Museum, to the peaceful memorial garden in honour of those who died in the workhouse, following the Famine.

From there, the tour moved, through Ard O'Donnell, to the grounds of Conwal Parish Church, where Brian Walsh, from LCHG gave a brief history of the church and Protestantism in Letterkenny. He also spoke about Dr John Kinnear, a Presbyterian minister who was the first cleric to be an MP and who championed the rights of tenants. Dr Kinnear is buried in the grounds of Conwal Parish church. Brian also gave an account of the building of the Cathedral of Saints Eunan and Columba and pointed out some of its most distinguishing features.

Onwards from there, down the hill to the Market Square, where Joanne McLaughlin, also from LCHG discussed the old practice of hiring fairs, which took place in Letterkenny and other locations in Ulster, twice a year from the 1700s to the 1900s. The Hiring Fair statue by sculptor Maurice Harron commemorates these events, and although the statue is placed in the Market Square, the hiring actually took place at Speers Lane, at the start of the High Road.

The tour proceeded down the Main Street to the Station House Hotel. Brian Marshall from the Toastmasters spoke about the development of transport in Letterkenny, and how the Port and the development of the railways brought prosperity and growth to the town.

Following the refreshments, we had the launch of the website. Stephen Coyle gave a brief overview of how the website came into being and he received a gift from the LCHG for all his work on its development. Johnny Joe McCollum thanked Joanne McLaughlin for her work in helping to bring the website to fruition and Brian Walsh, acting as MC drew the meeting to a close.

An enjoyable evening was had by all, and it was decided that the Walking Tour of Letterkenny could be an annual event during heritage Week from now on.