B133: Cobh & Emigration

Cobh, Co. Cork - 19 Jun 2024

​Nearly every Irish family has a story of emigration and migration.  When I was visiting my hometown last week, I took the opportunity of visiting Cobh in Co. Cork about an hour and a half from Carrick-on-Suir.  Up until 1920 Cobh was called Queenstown.  One of the major transatlantic Irish ports historically, the town was the departure point for 2.5 million of the 6 million Irish people who emigrated to North America between 1848 and 1950. 

Wedding photo of John Gough & Alice Mulcahy on 15 June 1890 in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA

​My maternal great grandparents, John Gough and Alice Mulcahy emigrated from there around 1889 spending ten years in Massachusetts before returning to Co Waterford in 1899 where my grandfather Jack was born.  Three of Jack’s sisters born in America returned there from Cobh when they came of age: Norah (Nonie) Gough McDonough on 31 Aug 1910 aboard the SS Saxonia, Maggie Gough McDonough on 21 Aug 1912 aboard the SS Franconia and Alice Gough Walsh on 10 Oct 1920 aboard the SS Carmania.  They landed in Boston after 7/8 days.  The youngest sister, Kattie Gough Naughton, born in Ireland, followed her sisters on 26 Sept 1927 on the SS Celtic arriving six days later in Boston. 

Beautiful Cobh - 19 Jun 2024

​In the 1950s, my grandfather Jack and his brothers travelled to Cobh with some of their family to welcome home the sisters on a visit.  There was a photo taken of them in Cobh outside the old railway station having travelled by train from Kilmacthomas.  That building is now the Cobh Heritage Centre and we had a chat with two people there who told us a bit of the history.  I also learned that any of the ships with names ending in “ic” were operated by the White Star Line and those ending in “ia” were operated by the Cunard Line…..so it seems that the Goughs had a preference for the Cunard line.

St. Colman's Cathedral, Cobh - 19 Jun 2024

​As we strolled around the beautiful town in glorious sunshine, I couldn’t help thinking how excited…. and a little scared …. the grandaunts must have felt sailing to America as 17/18-year-olds.  A whole world of adventure and opportunity ahead of them but also tinged with sadness at their last glimpse of Ireland, Cobh and St. Colman’s Cathedral, for years to come.  I was delighted to be able to take a photo in the same spot my grandparents stood at in the 1950s – 70 year’s later!

Standing where my relatives stood in Cobh 70 years ago!

​While in Cobh, we also visited the excellent “Titanic Experience” sited in the former White Star Line ticket/boarding office.  On 11 April 1912, as Queenstown, it was the final port of call for the Titanic before she set out across the Atlantic on the last leg of her maiden voyage. 123 passengers boarded at Cobh, with only 44 surviving the sinking.  It makes it very real when you realise that Maggie Gough McDonough sailed back to America only 4 months after the sinking.  I wonder was ahe worried?  On arrival at the former ticket office nowadays, you receive a replica Titanic boarding card. This boarding card has the details of one of the 123 passengers who came to the White Star Line ticket office on Thursday April 11th 1912.  I received Margaret Mannion who was 28 from Caltra, Co. Galway and travelling in 3rd class.  It makes the experience sobering as you are wondering how poor Margaret got on.

The front of my "ticket" showing the cost of a one-way Titanic ticket

The back of my Titanic ticket giving Margaret Mannion's details

​During the tour of the building with our lovely tour guide, we experienced the sights, sounds and smells of the harbour just as it was in 1912.  With the help of AV presentations and cabin reconstructions we could share in the fascinating stories of the original embarking passengers, what life was like for them on board Titanic and how they found themselves onboard the most luxurious liner of her time.  When the iceberg was hit, we could experience what happened through the eyes of Titanic survivors with a rare audio interview given by a surviving passenger.  

Replicas of cabins onboard Titanic

​Just before we left, we could check the passenger information screens to discover the fate of our individual passenger!  I was happy to discover that Margaret Mannion from my ticket had in fact survived but sadly her fiancé had perished.  A sobering thought.

Margaret Mannion's fate

​Another ship to be associated with the town, the Cunard passenger liner RMS Lusitania, was sunk by a German U-boat off the Old Head of Kinsale while en-route from the US to Liverpool on 7 May 1915. 1,198 passengers died, while 700 were rescued. The survivors and the dead alike were brought to Queenstown, and the bodies of over 100 who perished in the disaster lie buried in the Old Church Cemetery just north of the town. The Lusitania Peace Memorial is located in Casement Square, in front of the Arch Building housing the Cobh Library and Tourist Information Centre.

The old wooden pier where the Titanic passengers boarded the tenders

​Nowadays, no longer a site of emigration, tourism is a large employer in Cobh. Large cruise liners visit Cobh with many of the tourists transported out of Cobh by bus to other tourist destinations in the South West. In all, almost 100,000 cruise liner passengers and crew arrive in the town each year when their ships berth right in the centre of the town at the dedicated cruise terminal.  The day we were visiting, the “Seven Seas Splendor” was visiting for the day.

Admiring the "Seven Seas Splendor" in Cobh - 19 June 2024

​The town has remained largely unchanged since RMS Titanic departed from Cork Harbour in 1912, or indeed from when my great grandparents left in 1889.  The streetscape, St. Colman’s Cathedral and piers are still much the same. Facing the town are Spike Island and Haulbowline Island. The latter is the headquarters of the Irish Naval Service.  There are ferries over to Spike but we said we’d leave that for the next time.

The returning Spike Island Ferry - 19 Jun 2024

​Instead, we had a fantastic lunch at the “Titanic Bar” and sat at tables outside in the glorious sunshine on the quayside.  This is where the White Star Line 3rd class passengers emigrating to the US would have stood while waiting for the tenders to bring them out to their ship.  It gives you pause for thought that some were leaving Ireland for the very last time never to return. I am here today because my great grandparents made the decision to return to Ireland with their 5 US-born children in 1899 and had 5 more in County Waterford!  And I’m very glad they did ❤️

Above: A light lunch at the Titanic Bar 19 Jun 2024

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Bucket List Items Ticked Off in the above Blog 133
​​​​Number 20 - Creative

• Create a Family Tree with at least 4 generations - further research in Cobh

​Number 60 - Travel - General

• 60(a) Visit 80 Iconic Towns
• 60(b) Visit all 32 counties in Ireland

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​Other Blog Posts
Blog 11 - Sydney, Australia
Blog 12 - Hong Kong, China
Blog 17 - Beijing, Xi'an & Shanghai, China
Blog 19 - California, USA
Blog 27 - Scotland
Blog 28 - Barbados
Blog 29 - Canada
Blog 30 - Alaska
Blog 31 - Everglades, Florida

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