A WEEKLONG event celebrating the links between families in Canada and their forbears who left County Limerick generations ago is planned for September 2025, with hundreds expected to arrive on Shannonside to find their roots.
Uncovering the exciting, treacherous, and complex story of the Peter Robinson Settlers has long been a labour of love for Ballyhoura Development, and follows on from the groups’ successful involvement in The Gathering, Ireland Reaching Out, and the Historic Graves initiatives.
Next year will be a celebration of 200 years of Irish-Canadian connections, bringing people and places together to share experiences and build diaspora connections.
Between 1823 and 1825, over 2,000 Irish people from the Ballyhoura area and across Munster set sail from Cobh to the Ottowa and Ontario regions of Canada as part of the Peter Robinson Assisted Emigration Programme – also referred to as the Peter Robinson Experiment.
For the past decade, Ballyhoura Development has collaborated with communities across north Cork, east Limerick, and Canada to trace hundreds of local families who left the Ballyhoura area full of hope and expectation of a better life.
The Peter Robinson scheme was one of the largest assisted emigration schemes of its time and marked a significant chapter in both Irish and Canadian history. Settler families moved from one complex economic and political crisis to another.
Their stories of resilience and courage have been remembered and shared through the diaspora, creating a deep yearning to return to their ancestral lands. Bringing with them stories, music, culture, and connection with their homeland. These links have held strong for over 200 years.
Amanda Slattery, development manager at Ballyhoura Development, reflected that “rediscovering the story of the Peter Robinson Settlers has been a profound journey of connection and learning”.
“This project has brought people together, not just to remember the past, but to strengthen the ties between communities in Ireland and Canada today.
“2025 is a significant event welcoming hundreds of descendants back to the Ballyhoura Region and connecting with their ancestors’
communities of origin.”
With over a decade of dedicated research and documentation, Ballyhoura Development has collaborated with genealogists, historians, and descendants of the settlers to connect communities worldwide.
Working with the community-based Historic Graves project, an initiative focused on recording and preserving historic graveyards in Ireland, has enabled communities in Cork and Limerick to document graveyards connected to the settlers. This has been fundamental to identifying key links between family members who left and those who stayed behind.
For more details and date of events, visit ballyhouradevelopment.com.
