M&P O'Sullivan Ltd 100 Years

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M. & P. O’Sullivan, Celebrating <strong>100</strong> <strong>Years</strong>, 1905-2005 View of Cork from present day Gurranabraher, c.1900 View of Cork International Exhibition Grounds, Mardyke, 1902 / 1903 In particular, the location was renowned for its tanyards. In 1845, sixty tanyards existed but by the closing decade of the 1800s, only sixteen yards remained. This was due largely to the introduction of cheap machine-made boots and shoes. Indeed, the only profitable commodities were corn and wool. In 1883, the city possessed twelve woollen factories with the most profitable mills located at Donnybrook in Douglas. 6
7 The unstable political nature within the country continued from the late 1800s into the 1900s. Indeed, the quest for Home Rule became very strong especially among the Irish Parliamentary Party, which represented the Irish public in Westminster and which was led by Charles Stewart Parnell up to 1890. There was also a cultural re-awakening in attempting to preserve the Irish culture. The Gaelic Athletic Association (G.A.A.) was established in Thurles in 1884 and its aspirations to preserve the old Irish sporting customs in Ireland spread to the ‘four corners’ of Ireland. Indeed the second meeting of the G.A.A. was held in Cork on 27 December 1884 at the Victoria Hotel. A national Gaelic League known as Conradh na Gaeilge was established in 1893 to further preserve aspects of Irish culture and branches were established in County Cork and Cork City. A significant change within Cork Corporation was the changing of the title Mayor to Lord Mayor in 1900. In the latter year, the elected mayor was Daniel J. Hegarty. On the 3rd April 1900, Queen Victoria sailed into Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) on an Irish tour. The Mayor and Sheriff of Cork were invited to the celebrations in Dublin. To mark the occasion, on the eve of her return to London, Queen Victoria conferred the honour of baronetcy on the Lord Mayors of Dublin and Belfast. She also announced henceforth the First Citizen of the City of Cork would hold the honourable title of Lord Mayor. Perhaps the key cultural event of the first five years of the twentieth century in Cork was the Cork International Exhibition, which took place over two seasons in 1902 and 1903. Large-scale exhibitions were not new to the City. The first major Exhibition was held in 1852 and the second in 1883. These large exhibitions were hallmark events in the development of the cultural life of the city and also put the city on the global map. The ‘brain child’s’ of the social elites in nineteenth century Cork, the exhibitions were marketing strategies where spectacle and culture merged. Aesthetics of architecture, colour, decoration and lighting were all added to the sense of spectacle and in a tone of moral and educational improvement. The exhibition concept enchanted and diverted the masses from more serious matters. The exhibitions were not merchandise marts but promoted ideas about Cork’s relations between nations, the spread of education, the advancement of science, the nature of domestic life and the place of art in Cork society. Several scientific achievements of the day were on exhibition, including an electric light, a wireless telegraph apparatus, a complete e-ray plant and a specimen of the newly discovered metal and radium.
Page 1: Edited by Kieran Mc Carthy
Page 4 and 5: M. & P. O’Sullivan, Celebrating 1
Page 12 and 13: Producers and Staff in Mary Street,
Page 14 and 15: Guests at the opening of M.&P. O’
Page 36: E7.50 PROCEEDS TO CORK CHARITIES In

M&P O'Sullivan Ltd 100 Years

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