•  County Cork, Ireland

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In 1887, John Bartholomew's Gazetteer of the British Isles described County Cork like this:

Cork.* -- a maritime co., and the largest in Ireland; is bounded N. by co. Limerick, E. by cos. Tipperary and Waterford, S. and SW. by the Atlantic Ocean, and W. by co. Kerry; greatest length, E. and W., 110 miles; greatest breadth, N. and S., 60 miles; area, 1,849,686 ac. (1,835,317 ac. land and 14,369 water); pop. ...

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495,607,90.8 per cent. of whom are Roman Catholics, 7.8 Protestant Episcopalians, 0.5 Presbyterians, and 0.6 Methodists. The coast line is very extensive, being broken by numerous spacious inlets, which afford excellent harbours. The principal openings from W. to E. are Kenmare River, Bantry Bay, Dunmanus Bay, Roaring Water Bay, Clonakilty Bay, Kinsale Harbour, Cork Harbour, Youghal Harbour, &c. The islands of Bear, Whiddy, Clear, &c., and numerous islets, lie off the SW. coast, where the peninsulas of the mainland are elongated and rugged. The surface on the W. and SW. is mountainous or upland, attaining its greatest elevation in Caherbarnagh, a summit of 2239 ft. The general slope is to the E., and the greater part of the surface may be described as a rolling, well-watered, and fertile plain. The chief crops are oats, barley, and potatoes. (For agricultural statistics, see Appendix.) An immense quantity of butter is produced and exported. The largest rivers are the Blackwater, Lee, and Bandon, and these are navigable by their estuaries for considerable distances. The fisheries are very extensive. Copper, lead, anthracite, coal, iron, and limestone are all worked to some extent. The copper mines at Allihies, in bar. Bear, are less important than formerly. Manganese is abundant, particularly near Leap, in the S.; chalybeate springs occur at Mallow and at many other places. The co. is divided into East and West Ridings, and comprises 23 bars.-- Barretts, Barrymore, Condons and Clangibbon, Cork, Duhallow, Fermoy, Imokilly, Kerrycurrihy, Kinalea, Kinnatalloon, Kinsale, Muskerry East (part of), and Orrery and Kilmore, in East-Riding; and Bantry, Bear, Carbery East (E. and W. divs.), Courceys, Ibane and Barryroe, Kinalmeaky, Muskerry East (part of), and Muskerry West, in West-Riding; 251 pars.; and the parl. and mun. bor. of Cork (2 members). For parliamentary purposes it is divided into 7 divisions, viz., North, North-East, Mid, East, West, South, and South-East, 1 member for each division.

Vision of Ireland presents long-run change by redistricting historical statistics to modern units. However, none of our modern units covers an area close to that of County Cork. If you want trends covering a particular location within the county, find it on our historical maps and then select "Tell me more".

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