Heritage Week in Fingal 2022

National Heritage Week 2022 will take place from Saturday, 13th August to Sunday, 21st August 2022 and there will be plenty happening in Fingal.

This year our Heritage Officer Christine Baker is delighted to welcome the full return of in-person events, as well as continuing to showcase digital heritage projects, which proved so popular over the last two years.

For full details see www.heritageweek.ie 

Link to a Trail of Fingal Events 

Read our Press Release

Donabate-Portrane Heritage Audit Launch

The Donabate-Portrane Heritage Audit will be launched at local landmark, Stella's Castle, Portrane on Saturday 13th from 2pm to 3pm. Light refreshments and free copies of the audit will be available.

Fingal Heritage Office commissioned Sinéad Begley & Associates to conduct a heritage audit of the Donabate-Portrane Peninsula to identify heritage sites and features, and to provide recommendations on the best way to highlight and interpret these. It is intended that this report will provide a framework and promote a strategic and consistent approach to the development of heritage resources and interpretative materials for residents and visitors to the area. The value the local community places on heritage is evident in the action of local groups and individuals involved in recording, communicating, protecting and celebrating the unique character of Donabate and Portrane.

Digging Drumanagh Season 3

Fingal Heritage is returning to Drumanagh Promontory Fort for a third season of excavation between 17 August and 31 August. If you are over 18 and have ever wanted to take part in dig, places for volunteers are available-see https://www.fingal.ie/digging-drumanagh for a form and details of work undertaken to date.

Read more here: Digging Drumanagh Season 3 supported by the Heritage Council

Fingal Heritage Network - Heritage Night 2022

17 August, 7:15pm - 10:30pm St Sylvester's Parish Hall, Main Street, Malahide

Members of the historical societies and heritage groups from across Fingal come together to present a series of short talks on topics ranging from the electrification of Oldtown in 1947 to the wildflowers of Lusk and some songs and lore from Fingal.

Proceedings will be opened by Mayor of Fingal Cllr Howard Mahony

Skerries Thatch House Tour

As part of Heritage Week 2022 and the Fingal Thatch Project Fingal County Council are hosting a guided walking tour of the Thatched Houses in Skerries. The walk is being run in partnership with Carrig Conservation International Ltd and takes places on Saturday 20th August at 10.30 am. The Walk is free to attend but registration would be greatly appreciated



The meeting point is 9 Strand Street. From there we have approx. 1.5km of a walking tour laid out for participants where we will take you on a trip through the history of thatching in Fingal.

Register here: Skerries Thatch House Tour

Read more about the Fingal Thatch Project  which is supported by the Heritage Council

Check out the Video on the Fingal Thatch Tradition https://youtu.be/4YQcJhdZFO4

The following events are running at your Fingal Library.

National Heritage Workshop with the Rediscovery Centre

Create your own bug hotel using materials that can be found at home! This workshop will explore some of the amazing plants, animals and ecosystems in the area. Through fun interactive activities, investigate food chains, create food webs, learn all about camouflage and survival in the wild and explore how we can encourage biodiversity.

• Blanchardstown Library Saturday 13th August 10:30am – 12:00pm
• Rush Library Saturday 13th August 2:30pm – 4:00pm

Suitable for children aged 6 – 12 years. Book a place through your local library.

Bee Workshop with the Rediscovery Centre

What would it be like to be a bee?  Learn about these amazing pollinators that are fundamental to the survival of millions of plants and crops every year. Activities include crafting a bee hive from reused materials! 

• Swords Library Wednesday 17th August 10:30am – 12:00pm
• Baldoyle Library Wednesday 17th August 2:30pm – 4:00pm

Suitable for children aged 6 – 12 years. Book a place through your local library

Digital Heritage Projects

The Heritage X Climate Project

The Heritage X Climate Project is asking people across the county to get involved while out and about in their locality to help to monitor, measure and report the impacts of climate change on the heritage of the county. This is a means of engagement with the tangible impacts of climate change through the already familiar heritage features within the local landscape. Not only does the project raise awareness of the effects of climate hazards to beloved local landmarks of sites, monuments, geology, gardens and structures but provides a positive means for communities to monitor these effects and contribute to the response to climate change. For more details visit  Heritage and Climate Change

Fingal Heritage from Above - Balbriggan

In the fourth in the Fingal Heritage from Above series we look at Balbriggan which is associated with its industrial past and picturesque Harbour. However the town of the small hills is part of a considerably more ancient landscape. Indeed the Bremore passage tombs to the north of Balbriggan have long been thought to be older than Newgrange or Dowth. 

See more on this at Digital Heritage Projects

Fingal Thatch Project Video

Fingal was renowned in the past for its thatched buildings. Unfortunately there has been a reduction in the numbers of thatched cottages and houses that survive. There is also an important social history aspect to the heritage of thatch from language and folklore to traditional skills. The Fingal Thatch Project 2022 is surveying and recording the surviving buildings and sharing the stories of thatch.

For #HeritageWeek2022 as one of our Fingal Heritage Digital Projects we are premiering our Fingal Thatch Project Video below