Eglington Asylum, Cork (May 08)

Carraracter · 22-03-2009 1:16pm

I am actually organising a trip there from Dublin soon enough if anyone is interested??

sNarah · 23-03-2009 12:46pm

Carraracter wrote: »

I am actually organising a trip there from Dublin soon enough if anyone is interested??

Jup I would be. We'll just have to make sure that the building hasn't been taken down yet as I think I read somewhere it's been sold to developpers.

irishcrazyhorse · 26-03-2009 3:32am

i can ask about,not living near the place at all so wont eb able to see for myself but would be interested in joining yee if you dont mind

KatieO'D2k9 · 30-03-2009 5:24pm

A very beautiful building with a sad past. You can see it from the hotel across the river called The Kingsley. I went up there recently and there was a strange feeling around the place. On a different website it said that they were paying some security company about three milion euro a year to look after it but when I was up there I saw no trace of any security presence there. Some of the paitents were transfered to another mental hospital very close to it called Carig Mor. I was in The Kingsley the other day and there were people up there with torches probably drug addicts or alcaholics. Now it looks fairly easy to get into.
I don't know why anyone in their right mind would live in Atkins Hall!

The website I read most of this on is:www.AbandonedIreland.com

ajsp. · 30-03-2009 6:07pm

A shot taken from the top of the County Hall

Quint · 05-04-2009 1:24pm

Amazing building, and great location up on the hill lookind over the river/sea? It could be turned into a hotel

Samaris · 24-04-2009 3:18am

Fabulous shot, ajsp!

I thought I might be able to answer a couple of questions that people were asking about the place. I live quite near it and have done some research on it.

Our Lady's Complex is broken down into a number of buildings, the most impressive of which is that up in the photo over the river. All the buildings/ areas were named after saints, although I can't pinpoint which is which, unfortunately (would be very interested to know if anyone can!).

The sectors appear to have been Our Lady's, St. Kevin's, St Ita's (1 and 2), St. Anne's, St. John's, St. Patrick's, St. Dympna's and St. Bridget's.

Of these,
Our Lady's (the grey building) - closed in 1991 and sold, currently under renovation as Atkins Hall. Patients were transferred to St. Kevin's and St. Stephan's in Sarsfield Court.

St. Bridget's - closed in 1993, destroyed in a fire approx. 2006

St. Anne's - closed in 2001, when a new acute unit was opened in the Mercy Hospital. Reopened in 2003 as the High Security Unit

St. Kevin's - closed in 2002/2003 (accounts differ), patients transferred to ((note - I did find the name, but I can't seem to retrack it, if I get it, I'll add it in. Rest assured though, the urban legend ain't true :P))

St. Dympna's - closed in 2007 (plus hostel in the same grounds)

St. John's - would you believe it closed in 2009, the last of the buildings. Was a Mental Health Day Care Facility though, rather than, it seems, a permanent residence.

Chapel - Linked by partly-underground tunnel to St. Kevin's unit. Date of closure unknown, in excellent condition inside though.

Mortuary - part of the St. Kevin's complex, condition unknown

St. Kevin's, of course, is the red one at the city-end of the complex (not the red building seen in the photo though, but rather off to the side past the Church that's just within shot), and connected to it by the underground tunnel, as in some of Silverstealth's shots. The lived-in section, btw, is the far left of the photo, you can just see the top of the newer buildings over the roof of Our Lady's/Atkins' Hall.

Interestingly, the names differ in different accounts, with St. Patrick's and St. Bridget's being least mentioned, St. Kevin's, St. Anne's and St. Ita's being most commonly raised. St. Kevin's is by far the site most often condemned.

A number of controversies have surrounded the complex since its building, generally referring to the very poor conditions in which patients existed. It was condemned and/or recommendations were made for improvement in 1934, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 and 1940 (getting steadily more harsh by the year, by the way, reading from Abandoned Ireland (1) site). Again in 1966 (ref. in 2), 1971 saw it raised in the Dáil (2), mentioned in passing in 1987 (2a), and in the Seanad in 1988 by Senator O'Ryan who was somewhat pissed off by the affair and publicly named three people in positions of authority (which got him in trouble - there was a certain amount of all-round grouchiness, in fact. (3) )

Here's my sources if anyone's interested in more reading. I'd link some of the photo-album sites too, but I'm not sure if I'm allowed do that without permission. Silverstealth's got most of the best anyway though!

1) http://www.abandonedireland.com/skv_more.html
2) http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0253/D.0253.197104220005.html
2a) http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0372/D.0372.198704300033.html
3) http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0372/D.0372.198704300033.html
English, Eoin, Irish Examiner, (April 17th, 2009) "Vandals destroy former psychiatric hospital" http://www.examiner.ie/ireland/idsnojeysn/

Hope this was of interest to people!
Samaris

KevH · 06-05-2009 3:28pm

Hey All,

I have been wanting to go up there for some time to take a few photos and soak up some of the eeeeerie atmosphere.........does anyone know how to get in, do you go in at the bend in the road just after the turn for Shanakiel Hospital.....and is it patrolled by security????......I think I remember hearing something on the radio recently about security there??????

Kev

KatieO'D2k9 · 20-05-2009 1:26pm

KevH wrote: »

Hey All,

I have been wanting to go up there for some time to take a few photos and soak up some of the eeeeerie atmosphere.........does anyone know how to get in, do you go in at the bend in the road just after the turn for Shanakiel Hospital.....and is it patrolled by security????......I think I remember hearing something on the radio recently about security there??????

Kev

Yeah. I was up there and the way I got in was the grey building(Our Ladies) and walked all the way along till you get to the end of the building and there's a gate and walk through it and then there's another gate and theres an opening and go through it and you should be standing kind of in a lot of overgrowen grass and you should walk up it and then you're there. But there is another way by gowing up by the Shanakiel Hospital and theres 2 silver gates and you can walk thorugh them and walk down the back of it. But I personally prefer going up past Our Ladies.
I hope this helps.

KatieO'D2k9 · 20-05-2009 1:34pm

Carraracter wrote: »

I am actually organising a trip there from Dublin soon enough if anyone is interested??

I was talking to a friend and he was wondering if anyone would be up for a night up there??

KevH · 20-05-2009 3:17pm

Katie,

Going by the other threads......a night up there sounds a bit too scarey.....there are meant to be junkies and undesirables hanging about up there at night!!!

If however anyone is interested in going up there during the day for a wander around inside....take some photos etc, please drop me a note...I'm hoping to go up there in the next couple of weeks

Kev

steelydan99 · 20-05-2009 8:34pm

I would love to get up there in the next couple off weeks, I am off thrs and fri most weeks and coming from Waterford , if anyone knows how to get in , I would love to tag along?

Are we breaking the law by entering or is it that abandoned thats no-one cares?

Thanks

John

irishcrazyhorse · 20-05-2009 9:32pm

Id be interested in going some night shots up there,once there is a couple of us we should be fine and once we use a bit of cop-on!
PM me if intersted

AnCatDubh · 21-05-2009 12:08am

steelydan99 wrote: »

Are we breaking the law by entering or is it that abandoned thats no-one cares?

This is a really important point. Everyone - please ensure that you've done your homework as to ownership, trespassing, the law, permissions, etc.

Also, while the forum has facilitated overnight photography expeditions in the past to places such as Charleville Castle, these have always had a very formal arrangement with those in the ownership of the venue. It is highly inadvisable to organise or partake in any activity which potentially would put your own personal safety at risk.

Obviously people are free to self organise events and expeditions by their own volition however from a moderation perspective of the boards photography forum, I am not happy for the 'overnight' as described above to be facilitated through this thread. Hence, if there is to be further discussion on such a visit please PM me in advance of further posting with your homework completed as to the legitimacy of such an organised visit. Failure to do so will gain infractions or ban as deemed appropriate.

Thank you.

steelydan99 · 21-05-2009 2:35pm

I wouldn't agree to the overnight thing myself. Dont know what you would gain (in photography terms) from it?

I am off thursday and fri next week (28th &29th) if anyone wants to arrange a mini meet?

John

irishcrazyhorse · 22-05-2009 3:01am

sorry,what i ment was going up for an hour or 2 or maybe 3!
Not overnight,that just wouldnt need to be done really as it is very close to the city so staying in town aint a problem.

koklekel · 22-05-2009 8:38am

Mods - I think you should kill this thread

Entering a building, etc, with intent to commit an offence:

Section 11 of the 1994 Act makes it an offence for anyone to enter (i.e., trespass) a building or the vicinity of a building with the intention of committing an offence and/or interfering with property.

For example, you need not have entered a building to commit an offence under this section. By being on the property (i.e. in the back garden or the driveway of a house) this will be enough to bring a person within the definition of this section. It will be a matter for the prosecution in any proceedings to prove that the accused person was present in the building or on the property with the intention of committing an offence or with intent to interfere with any property. Those found guilty of this offence will be liable to a fine not exceeding €2,500 or to a maximum term in prison of 6 months or to both.

Burnt · 22-05-2009 11:01am

koklekel wrote:

Section 11 of the 1994 Act makes it an offence for anyone to enter (i.e., trespass) a building or the vicinity of a building with the intention of committing an offence and/or interfering with property.

Is photography with intent; an offence/interfering with property?

AnCatDubh · 22-05-2009 1:31pm

I'm not proposing to kill the thread just yet but I'm temporarily closing it - the discussion is veering off topic from the sub forum that it is actually in i.e. photographic expeditions, intended to discuss the organisation of photographic expeditions.

A second opinion has been sought in terms of any boards site issues with the discussion continuing.

Thank you.

AnCatDubh · 26-05-2009 10:59am

Ok, this thread is reopened for business. It has been deemed that the discussion thus far doesn't constitute something that concerns the boards site generally.

A couple of pointers to ensure this thread remains open;

Please keep on topic. For example - We don't want to argue what is or isn't included in the law. If you want to discuss this then please start a thread in the general forum for that debate.
The concerns expressed a number of times over trespassing and legal implications of such are real and valid. Ignore them at your personal peril. As with any forum of the boards site, threads or posts with any activity considered illegal will be removed and the responsible users will be have action taken against them. This is deemed no different from discussing avoidance of importation taxes and the like. It's illegal so don't do it.
As with any photography expedition, please keep your personal safety to the fore in all of this.

Obviously from a moderation point of view - any discussion which falls outside of this guide and the general thrust of the thread will draw moderator attention.

Thank you.

ician · 28-06-2009 6:16pm

I was at St. Kevin with a few friends earlier today, just with the intent of having a look around and exploring the place. The weather was pretty miserable but the the building itself was really cool. Unfortunately there seems to be no way to (safely) get into the main part of the main red building now, every accessible window or door is boarded up with these really tough metal plates. They seem to be a recent enough edition

We didn't want to go damaging anything to gain access but even if we did I'd say it would not have been possible without some heavy power tools or maybe a ninja grappling hook for the higher up open windows!

There are some other outlying buildings and parts of buildings which are accessible but I'd say all the really cool stuff is locked behind the metal paneling. Has anybody else been up and found a way around this by any chance?

Oh yeah and if anyone is planning on going up at night I'd advise against it. There was no sign of security patrols/cctv or any kind of normal people, but we did hear a good few people shouting and making general drunken noises from one of the buildings up at the very back behind some vegetation, they were also playing some creepy humming music :eek:. We stayed away from that building.

An interesting place. But definitely a bit creepy and its a pity its all locked up now.

Jessica xxx · 29-06-2009 3:34pm

koklekel wrote: »

Mods - I think you should kill this thread

Entering a building, etc, with intent to commit an offence:

Section 11 of the 1994 Act makes it an offence for anyone to enter (i.e., trespass) a building or the vicinity of a building with the intention of committing an offence and/or interfering with property.

For example, you need not have entered a building to commit an offence under this section. By being on the property (i.e. in the back garden or the driveway of a house) this will be enough to bring a person within the definition of this section. It will be a matter for the prosecution in any proceedings to prove that the accused person was present in the building or on the property with the intention of committing an offence or with intent to interfere with any property. Those found guilty of this offence will be liable to a fine not exceeding €2,500 or to a maximum term in prison of 6 months or to both.

You need to get a life, No one is doing any harm down there at St. Kevins!!! Its the Junkies and drunks and scumbags with the spray paint that do the damage not the everyday peeps goin in for a look around, take a few pictures etc, if you touch nothing, take nothing etc your not abusing anyones property and no one in the right mind minds anyone having a nose around as long as the place is left as found. Bit of harmless fun and adventure..... So no need to get all Theoryitical on us !!!

Jessica xxx · 29-06-2009 4:10pm

kitty29 wrote: »

Hiya :-)

Thought i'd leave a quick msg to this. Firstly as you say when it closed in 1988 i think you may be reffering to the grey part of the building, that right? Some sections of the red brick building (St Kevins) was opened up until (now i'm not 100% which year it closed) at least 1998 so i'm guessing that part closed around 2000. From what i've heard conditions in the grey building (called St ita's 1 and 2 i think amongst other names) were far more appalling than the red brick right up until its closure. Nonetheless, conditions in St Kevins were pretty appalling too particularly given that it was open until around 2000-thats not a long time ago. This was a place where upto 10 women (i only know about the womens ward) lived and slept in a pretty small ward. one room was where one would get locked into for any number of reasons- usually for being agressive or a bit 'mad'- not always necessarily against themselves or others. This was a pretty grim room with only a bed (i suppose its better than just a matress!) and the door had a big window made of perspex (or something like that) so you could see out and see in. The toilets often had no toilet paper, there was no locks on the toilet doors for obvious reasons- and one experience i had while going to the toilet, was when a woman came in and tried to choke herself with a pair of tights (dont think its possible but she was so full of anxiety), people were trying to do stuff to themselves all the time- a lot of it i feel was because of the sheer boredom and frustration that place did to a person. The nurses station which was completely covered is where a lot of the nurses stayed inside all day. When someone wanted a cigerette they opened a latch and lit a lighter. Not all nurses were like this (there were extremely caring ones too) but the majority were-I honestly dont think they saw the patients as 'humans', all their dignity, respect, rights were taken away once they entered that place. There were many instances of cockroaches on the floor. Once or twice the bed room had to be fumagated due to beg bugs. From my own experience of being in there for a year and half i always found the experience of being in there harder to overcome than my depression etc. This may sound bad but i also felt i was the sanest person in there-my only 'crime' (i like to call it copping mechanism) was to hurt myself-it could be compared to an addiction. I will never forget the people i met in there who once you looked past how they were acting were amazing people. Some had been put into our ladys many yrs before that and in effect probabbly were institutionalized. they never recieved the right support (note i use support rather than help), they were treated so horribly, drugged upto their eyeballs continiously so that are controlled, not dealing with whats underneath all this anger,pain, hurt. I was on about 15+ tablets at one stage-how was that supposed to help. What really makes me mad is the fact that i was only just turned 17 when i went in there. I got a lot worse before i got better and it certainly was not down to my twice a week 10 minute abrupt insensitive visit from my consultant psychiatrist- it mostly certainly was a combination of support from one or two amazing compassionate nurses,psychologist who taught me the skills to learn how to talk about things and how to cry, the never ending incredible support of my family and of course my own determination and hard work. i took myself off my medication a month or two after i got out and have never needed/taken it again and thats a bit over 10 years ago. anways i think i ended up giving a bit of a rant there

Fantastic story Kitty, thanks for sharing your experiences with us.....

Jess

Jessica xxx · 29-06-2009 4:14pm

If anyone/group is planning a trip to St. Kev's :eek: anytime soon
give us a shout, PM me

Jessica xxx · 29-06-2009 4:16pm

If anyone/group is planning a trip to St. Kev's :eek: anytime soon
PM me plez.

We should get something organized.......

steelydan99 · 30-06-2009 12:09am

me too

Dara Robinson · 30-06-2009 5:21pm

me 3

Ricky91t · 10-12-2009 1:31am

If anyone did go up here in the end I'd love to see some pics..Saw it from a friends apartment recently and we went up and had a look outside(didn't go in) was dark and very eerie but looks like a very cool building!

keiran110 · 11-12-2009 5:18pm

I live literally a stones throw away from that building. Im in the new block of apartments built adjacent to it. I walk past this building several times a day and often late at night. me and my roommates have literally seen nothing weird or scary. At the start it was freaky walking around it but now its fine. On a clear night, we look out our window and the moon is shining right beside one of the towers and illuminating a cross, its gorgeous in a weird kind of way!
You should go up some sunny day, theres loads of old stone benchs and a nice garden here. its great to relax and get a good view of the city.

Rb · 15-12-2009 1:02am

Is it being turned into apartments? It's an absolutely beautiful building with quite a bit of interesting history, as it would seem, it would a shame if it were just flung to developers for the highest price and turned into the latest in the slew of "modern" apartments.

Eglington Asylum, Cork (May 08)

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