The Old Thatch

The claim

A thatched pub in the east Cork village of Killeagh, the Old Thatch claims to be one of Ireland's oldest licensed houses. In 1867 its owner told magistrates the house had been licensed for more than two centuries, and was refused a licence for allegedly harbouring Fenians. The Sweeney family still runs it, serving food beneath a willow-twig ceiling.

What the records show

The house's own site does not give the year. Archived on 11 June 2026, it says the trade goes back as far as the 1600s and calls the Old Thatch Ireland's oldest thatched pub; the 1667 is IrishCentral's, and it is arithmetic on a document — at the Castlemartyr quarter sessions of 1867 the owner John Conway sought to renew his licence, saying the house had been licensed for more than two hundred years, and was refused on the grounds that he was harbouring Fenians. A travel blog gives 1650 instead. The pub's own account traces the Sweeney family's ownership to the mid-1700s.

What to look for inside

• 1867 licence refused amid claims the owner sheltered Fenians
• Often called Ireland's oldest thatched pub

Visiting

The Old Thatch is in Killeagh, Ireland, at Killeagh, Co. Cork. We do not list opening times, because they change; the pub’s own site is the place to check before you set out.

Sources

1. www.irishcentral.com/travel/ireland-oldest-charming-pubs
2. irelandonabudget.com/14-of-irelands-oldest-pubs/
3. web.archive.org/web/20260611123909/http://theoldthatch.ie/
4. www.revenue.ie/en/corporate/information-about-revenue/statistics/excise/licences/liquor-licences.aspx

Know something we don’t?Suggest a correctionLast checked Sept 2026

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