Placing Corofin firmly on the mapboard

A SIGN featuring a map of Corofin as well as details of its historical and natural features could become a prototype for other villages nationwide, it has been claimed.
As well as showing a map, the sign also has extensive information on local history, angling, folklore and nature.

“It celebrates our local heritage and we believe that it’s the first of its kind in the country. It also includes townlands and Natura 2000 sites and is a possible prototype which could be adopted by other rural towns and villages in the future,” stated Gerard Kennedy, chairman of the Corofin and District Development Association.
The mapboard, put up some weeks ago, was designed by local planning consultant Brendan McGrath with the help of his wife, Anelleke.
“It wasn’t a huge jump for me because planning is very much about making changes in the environment that are sustainable and you have to take account of the cultural heritage that is around. I did a project for Clare County Council to do with signage in the Burren and for that, we did a lot of public consultation and one of the things that came out of it was that the villages should have their own mapboards rather than a standardised one for the whole of the Burren. These localised signs should contain detailed information about the locality itself. I offered to do something like that for the local Corofin and District Development Association, as it is something which I believe was a good idea,” explained Brendan.
What makes the mapboard stand out is its detail.
“The two main things about that mapboard are that it shows all the townlands and with post codes coming down the road people are getting more attached to townlands than ever. It also shows all the special areas of conservation and the European designations that exist in Corofin and its surroundings,” Brendan outlined.
“Mapboards are aimed at visitors but people who live here are going to get a lot out of it as well. There is a lot on the board that people knew about vaguely but now people can see where these things are,” he added.
The mapboard was the fruit of extensive research by Brendan and Anelleke.
“There is a lot of research behind it and the local historian, Michael McMahon, was very helpful. There are a lot of quality people from the area with a wealth of knowledge about different things that were relevant to this. The special area of conservation data came from the National Parks and Wildlife Service while the townlands and archaeological information came from Clare County Council. We also used a painting by Frederick William Burton, who lived in Cliften House, before he became director of the National Gallery in London. We put a few posters of the mapboard up for sale in the Daybreak shop in Corofin but they sold out very quickly,” Brendan continued.
“A map is a way of packaging the features of a place in an interesting way. I am pleased with it,” he concluded.