Whitegate, County Cork

Whitegate

*An Geata Bán* (Irish)
Whitegate An Geata Bán (Irish)
Village
	Whitegate waterfront at low tide
	Whitegate Location in Ireland
	Coordinates: 51°49′34″N 8°13′56″W / 51.8262°N 8.2322°W
Country	Ireland
Province	Munster
County	County Cork
Dáil constituency	Cork East
EU Parliament	South
Population (2022)	1,248
Time zone	UTC+0 (WET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-1 (IST (WEST))

Whitegate (Irish: an Geata Bán)^[2] is a small village in East Cork on the eastern shore of Cork Harbour in County Cork, Ireland. It lies within the townlands of Ballincarroonig and Corkbeg.^[3] Whitegate is within the Cork East Dáil constituency.

The ruins of a 14th-century or 15th-century church lie in the grounds of Corkbeg churchyard close to Whitegate village.^[4] The current Church of Ireland parish church was built within the same churchyard in 1881.^[5]^[6]

Once a fishing port and known for lace-making, during the 20th-century Whitegate became the location for Ireland's only oil refinery. This facility, Whitegate refinery, was built on Corkbeg Island on one side of Whitegate Bay and has been owned by Irving Oil since 2016.^[7] Aghada Power Generating plant lies on the other side of the bay.

The writer William Wall grew up here, though his home, then vacant, was destroyed in a fire in 2008 in a suspected arson attack.^[8]^[9] Trabolgan Holiday Village is located nearby.^[10]

Historic estates

The Hiberno-Norman FitzGerald family (a sub-branch of the Desmond Geraldines that owned Corkbeg and Lisquinlan), were landowners in the area.^[11] Following a marriage between the FitzGerald and Uniacke families, ownership of lands at Corkbeg and Whitegate transferred to Col Robert Uniacke. After marrying Helena FitzGerald, Robert Uniacke assumed the name and arms of the FitzGeralds. Ultimately Uniacke Fitzgerald's nephew, another Col Robert Uniacke Fitzgerald, built a great house on the estate lands. The Corkbeg and Lisquinlan estates were later willed to Sir Robert Uniacke-Penrose-FitzGerald 1st Bt of Corkbeg and Lisquinlan who died 1919 without issue. Whitegate House, dating from c.1780, still stands at Whitegate.^[12]^[13]

References

^ "Census Mapping - Towns: Whitegate - Population Snapshot". visual.cso.ie. CSO. 2022. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
^ "An Geata Bán / Whitegate". logainm.ie. Placenames Database of Ireland. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
^ "Ballincarroonig Townland, Co. Cork". townlands.ie. Townlands of Ireland. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
^ "Record of Monuments and Places - County Cork - Volume 2" (PDF). Dúchas (National Monuments and Historic Properties Service). 1998. p. 53. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
^ Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 2: East and South Cork. Dublin: Government Stationery Office. 1994. CO088-033002-/Church/Corkbeg/Near NE corner of graveyard (CO088-033001-), ivy-clad ruins of rectangular church stone plaque with date 1587 set in S side of doorway. Human head carved in stone Parish church of Corkbeg, in repair 1615 but probably out of use by 1700 Replaced by new church built on site immediately to S of graveyard in 1881
^ "Saint Michael's Church Of Ireland Church, Corkbeg, County Cork". buildingsofireland.ie. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
^ "Whitegate Refinery deal done, new owners say jobs secure". independent.ie. Independent News and Media. 10 September 2016.
^ "Three homes damaged in fire". irishexaminer.com. Irish Examiner. 18 June 2008.
^ "Man arrested after arson attack". irishexaminer.com. Irish Examiner. 19 June 2008.
^ "It Takes A Village festival: everything you need to know". irishtimes.com. Irish Times. 12 April 2018. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
^ R. G. FitzGerald-Uniacke (30 June 1912). "The FitzGeralds of Glenane, Co. Cork". The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 6. 2. Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland: 165. JSTOR 25514232.
^ "Whitegate House, Strand Road, Whitegate, County Cork". buildingsofireland.ie. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
^ "House - Whitegate House". landedestates.nuigalway.ie. NUIG Landed Estates Database. Retrieved 17 November 2018.