Comprising mostly of English ex-navy men, the Coastguard service in Ireland was established in 1818

Ireland was an unpopular posting for Coastguard personnel.  Accommodation was considered poor and stations were isolated while education and employment opportunities for sons and daughters were limited. Very few Irishmen joined the Coastguard.

The Coastguard acted as a reserve for the navy, protected the Revenue’s interests and defended the coast by being active against smugglers; ensuring that wrecks were not illegally plundered and assisting the police in discovering illicit stills.  None of these activities endeared the Coastguard to the local population.

Courtmacsherry Coastguard Station

by Mary Sheehy - O'Shea

The ditty said ‘all to one side like the town of Courtmac’ but up to the 1960s, coming into the village from Timoleague, it wasn’t like that at all.

In Sebera, all the houses were on the seashore side.  The railway closed in 1961.  At some stage the residents, or what remained of them, were relocated to St. Joseph’s Place and the houses were demolished.

That part of the village is now referred to as Siberia, but having gone to the local National School, which was between Upper and Lower Sebera, I never heard it referred to, alluded to or called anything other than Sebera, pronounced Sibeire.   I knew the place and the people, but how reliable my memories are, we shall see.

Memories of a Courtmacsherry Childhood

The practice of creating Cillíní burial sites in West Cork arose from a combination of social, religious, and economic factors

In past times many families could not afford formal burials in consecrated ground, particularly for children who died at a young age. As a result, these small, informal burial sites sprang up, often located near churches or in remote rural areas. In Barryroe, the seventeen known cillíní serve as poignant reminders of the hardships faced by families during times of high infant mortality.

Here is a video of the Cillín at Donaghmore, Lislevane

The Cillín at Donaghmore