New Project Seeks Untold Stories of Fota House, It's Gardens and The People Who Shaped Them
Fota House and Gardens is seeking memories from former staff, volunteers and locals for a new oral history project preserving its stories.
The stories, memories and traditions that helped shape one of Ireland's most important historic estates are set to be recorded and preserved through a new oral history initiative at Fota House and Gardens in East Cork.
The project forms part of Heritage Voices Plus, led by the Irish Heritage Trust, the independent non-profit organisation that cares for some of Ireland's most significant built, cultural and natural heritage sites and works to protect and share their stories for future generations. The Trust has overseen Fota House's conservation, interpretation and public engagement since acquiring the property in 2007.
Delivered by Mac Conmara Heritage Consulting, national specialists in oral heritage, and funded through the Heritage Council Community Grants Programme, the initiative will record the experiences of gardeners, estate workers, former staff, volunteers, local historians and members of the wider community who have been connected to Fota House and Gardens across the decades.
The project will capture memories of life in the house and on the estate, gardening traditions, biodiversity, seasonal rhythms, horticultural practice, estate management and the many people whose knowledge and dedication shaped Fota over generations. Many of these stories have never been formally documented, and the Irish Heritage Trust hopes to preserve this rich social history alongside Fota's built and natural heritage.
Interviews recorded through the project will be preserved through the Cork Folklore Project at University College Cork, ensuring they remain accessible for future generations.
Dr Tomás Mac Conmara of Mac Conmara Heritage Consulting:
"Fota House and Gardens are living archives. They preserve generations of knowledge, skill and observation. Oral history allows us to record not only what people did, but why they did it, how they understood the estate and how practices changed over time. These stories are every bit as valuable as the physical heritage itself."
The initiative builds on a national oral history framework developed jointly by the Irish Heritage Trust and Mac Conmara Heritage in 2025, establishing professional standards for oral history collection, ethical recording, interview preparation and long-term archival preservation across the Trust's properties.
Heritage Voices Plus will also include a volunteer shadowing programme, giving participants practical experience in oral history methods, ethical practice and heritage documentation.
Martina Carroll, Volunteer Coordinator with the Irish Heritage Trust at Fota House and Gardens:
"Visitors are often captivated by Fota House, its magnificent gardens and arboretum, but behind them are generations of people whose work, knowledge and dedication made this place what it is today. We want to ensure those stories are recorded and preserved before they are lost."
Members of the public with memories of Fota House and Gardens, as former staff, volunteers, visitors or members of the local community, are encouraged to contact the Irish Heritage Trust at learning@irishheritagetrust.ie.
