Blackpool, County Cork

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Blackpool is a suburb of Cork city in County Cork, Province of Munster, Ireland. It is situated in the north of the city, on the N20 road to Mallow.

[edit] Social History

Blackpool had the nickname the "Belfast of the South", due to its concentration of industries such as tanning, bacon curing, brewing and distilling. As well as being a suburb, Blackpool is regarded by some as the commercial and social centre of working class districts on the northside of Cork City. A vibrant working class community developed, its identity reinforced by the area's association with icons such as Taoiseach (Prime Minister of the Republic of Ireland) and hurler Jack Lynch, Christy Ring (commonly regarded as the greatest hurler of all time) and footballer Charlie Hurley.

Blackpool's Roman Catholic parish church, the Church of the Annunciation, was designed by noted stone carver Seamus Murphy RHA who worked in the locality. The building of this church, in the 20th century, was funded by the O'Dwyer family who owned the nearby Sunbeam textile complex.