Mount Jerome Cemetery: why is it not redeveloped yet?

gaiscioch

I paid a visit to Mount Jerome today just to while away a bit of time at the gravesides of Máirtín Ó Díreáin, Máirtín Ó Cadhain, Thomas Davis, J. M. Synge and others. I was really surprised at how undeveloped the entire cemetery is (obviously my comparison is with Glasnevin).

I asked an elderly employee standing outside the church would he know where Thomas Davis's grave was, and he said he didn't know where any of the graves were and I'd have to go to the office. You'd think everybody there would know where the most famous graves are. I then went to the office and they had no map listing where famous people are buried, people like this. I was hoping they'd have something as basic as that. The man in the office said I can find that in the online records, but the most I can find is these 22 graves of historical interest. There were no signs in the cemetery to aid tourists or explain the history. No visitors' centre or documentary. Even the coffee shop is up a stairs making it difficult for a sizeable number of people to access. Large swathes of the land were overgrown, paths were not surfaced safely and very few of the old tombstones are in any sort of restored or preserved condition. I left without seeing any of the graves I had hoped it would be easy to find.

Yet, the place is seething with potential to be a major spot on Dublin's historical, cultural and tourist trail. just as Glasnevin now is. (No. 2 in "Things to do in Dublin" according to Tripadvisor) Any state investment would be returned in money paid for tours, museum visits, etc. According to its website here, there are over 250,000 people buried in Mount Jerome, and it receives some 200,000 visitors each year. Imagine what that could be if energetic, enthusiastic management and local politicians could get together to develop the cemetery into a more tourist-friendly place along the lines of Glasnevin (fantastic tour, if you haven't taken it). It's also a popular spot for local people to go for walks in, according to this Irish Times report.


Here's a fantastically informative article on the cemetery's history (it was opened in 1836, first Catholics were apparently buried in the 1920s as a result of a strike in Glasnevin, etc):
Dublin's Père Lachaise: Mount Jerome Cemetery

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Does anybody know if there are any plans by DCC, Tourism Ireland or the local community to develop this cemetery using even one-third of the money spent on Glasnevin cemetery's redevelopment?

geecee

Errm, sorry to sound negative.... but who in their right mind wants to visit a cemetery!

They are not tourist spots, they are places of rest for the dead and for families of the deceased?

athtrasna

geecee wrote: »

Errm, sorry to sound negative.... but who in their right mind wants to visit a cemetery!

They are not tourist spots, they are places of rest for the dead and for families of the deceased?

Not at all, I can think of several cities where cemeteries are amongst the top attractions, Dublin being one, Paris, Washington and others as well

geecee

athtrasna wrote: »

Not at all, I can think of several cities where cemeterys are amongst the top attractions, Dublin being one, Paris, Washington and others as well

You gotta be kidding!

Just because the marketing people in Glasnevin cemetery paid the right cash to Tripavisor to get it to hype it and get it to the top of the rankings.. does not mean its a top attraction!

I can guarantee you that 99% of the tourists that visit Ireland have not heard of Glasnevin cemetery before or after they come here!

Also if you had to list 10 things to do in either Paris or Washington... I can guarantee the average joe will easily list 10 places more interesting than a graveyard!

Galadriel

geecee wrote: »

You gotta be kidding!

Also if you had to list 10 things to do in either Paris or Washington... I can guarantee the average joe will easily list 10 places more interesting than a graveyard!

A lot of tourists visit Père Lachaise Cemetery while in Paris, just because it does not interest you it does not mean it's not popular with tourists.

listermint

geecee wrote: »

You gotta be kidding!

Just because the marketing people in Glasnevin cemetery paid the right cash to Tripavisor to get it to hype it and get it to the top of the rankings.. does not mean its a top attraction!

I can guarantee you that 99% of the tourists that visit Ireland have not heard of Glasnevin cemetery before or after they come here!

Also if you had to list 10 things to do in either Paris or Washington... I can guarantee the average joe will easily list 10 places more interesting than a graveyard!

Clearly you've never been on a tour.

There's nothing worse than people who haven't a breeze or experience what they are talking about giving an uninformed opinion.

Embarrassing yourself buddy.


Please tell us about the tour you went on and what you thought specifically no one would be Interested in.

Genuinely interested

newacc2015

athtrasna wrote: »

Not at all, I can think of several cities where cemeterys are amongst the top attractions, Dublin being one, Paris, Washington and others as well

Glasnevin Cemetery is a massive success as it happens to be in a great area. It is connected to the Botanic Garden which brings in 540k people alone per year. There is Kavanghs beside the Cemetery which is popular with tourist. Glasnevin Cementry is also famous as it is in Ulysses. Glasnevin Cemetry has a museum, a cafe etc.

Why would another cemetery in the city be another massive hit? Most of my friends and I are done with two or three churchs sight seeing. Why would anyone want to go Glasnevin Cemetery then trek across the city to see a less well known one with little else in the area?

Law of diminishing marginal returns. One cemetery is great. Another less well known one with little else in the area, not so much

geecee

listermint wrote: »

Clearly you've never been on a tour.

There's nothing worse than people who haven't a breeze or experience what they are talking about giving an uninformed opinion.

Embarrassing yourself buddy.


Please tell us about the tour you went on and what you thought specifically no one would be Interested in.

Genuinely interested

Errm, sorry I see no embarrassment in admitting that I have never been to visit a graveyard in the middle of a dodgy area of Dublin.

Its a field full of dead people, I see no other reason to go there except to pay homage to one of my direct ancestors!

Clearly you are very proud of your "attraction" but please don't try to bully or harass others into thinking its anything more than a collection of morbid mausoleums!

Spanish Eyes

My grandparents on both sides + aunts and uncles are buried in the "Jerrim" That's what they called it. And the hospice was nearby, and in the old days I heard the stories of the kids robbing the pennies off the eyes of the dead laid out in the hospice. Those were the days.

To be fair, it is very historical and Victorian, lots of vaults. When we were kids we were terrified going there.

Still, it is an historic part of Dublin.

athtrasna

newacc2015 wrote: »

Glasnevin Cemetery is a massive success as it happens to be in a great area. It is connected to the Botanic Garden which brings in 540k people alone per year. There is Kavanghs beside the Cemetery which is popular with tourist. Glasnevin Cementry is also famous as it is in Ulysses. Glasnevin Cemetry has a museum, a cafe etc.

Why would another cemetery in the city be another massive hit? Most of my friends and I are done with two or three churchs sight seeing. Why would anyone want to go Glasnevin Cemetery then trek across the city to see a less well known one with little else in the area?

Law of diminishing marginal returns. One cemetery is great. Another less well known one with little else in the area, not so much

I've visited both Pere La Chaise and Montparnasse in Paris, the success of one did not diminish the attraction of the other. I've happily passed a number of hours in both as I did in Glasnevin, fascinating places!

tricky D

Mod note: @geecee Don't post in this thread again.

geecee

geecee wrote: »

Errm, sorry I see no embarrassment in admitting that I have never been to visit a graveyard in the middle of a dodgy area of Dublin.

Glasnevin is dodgy? What are you talking about?

They've done a great job developing the site. It brings in a huge number of visitors.

Birneybau

Galadriel wrote: »

geecee wrote: »

You gotta be kidding!

Also if you had to list 10 things to do in either Paris or Washington... I can guarantee the average joe will easily list 10 places more interesting than a graveyard!

A lot of tourists visit P re Lachaise Cemetery while in Paris, just because it does not interest you it does not mean it's not popular with tourists.

Been there, Oscar Wilde, Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf. Have also been to Recoleta in Burner Aires, big tours in both.

spurious

Mount Jerome could do with a clear 'here's where the famous folk are' map and I take your point about the non-accessibility of the cafe, but I don't think it needs or would benefit from Glasnevin-style 'development'.

I far prefer Mount Jerome to wander about and it certainly has some spectacularly spooky vaults. I don't think it's big enough to need the Glasnevin treatment.

Gavin "shels"

spurious wrote: »

I don't think it's big enough to need the Glasnevin treatment.

This. My nan is buried up the very back, takes no more than 10 mins to walk there from the entrance, other relations on to the left side and it's a 2 min walk. Not much in the place in all honesty compared to the history of Glasnevin.

david75

visited Tolkiens grave when I was in Oxford and it was quite busy with other tourists doing the same. Visited Marilyn Monroes grave when I was in LA, same graveyard had a massive number of stars from screen and music buried and interred in the same graveyard, but it was weirdly quiet.