Hovering at the edge of our image of Letterkenny is ‘The Mental’, the former St. Conal’s Psychiatric Hospital, a massive institution built to deal with the incomprehensible problem of the apparent growth in people classed as insane in nineteenth-century Ireland.

A place people feared to be sent, and also an asylum from the world, where a crude form of what could be called ‘welfare’ was available. Were such enormous buildings needed, and what can we make of them now?

In a brief dusk walking tour, Barry Ramsay, a former resident and latterly a senior staff member, with happy memories of growing up within its walls, and Colm Murray, an architectural historian researching how these buildings were brought into existence, will explore complementary cultural meanings of St. Conal’s.

Meet: In front of St. Conal’s Hospital,  F92 FW6Y

6.30pm – 7.30pm (Duration 1 hour) No booking required.

This event is supported by the County Donegal Heritage Office and The Heritage Council as part of the implementation of the County Donegal Heritage Plan.

Image Credit: Courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.