Kenmare's old courthouse is home to an exhibition telling the history of the town from its origins as Neidín (the little nest), through its establishment as a market town by the Marquis of Lansdowne to the founding of the Poor Clare Convent in 1861, which still stands behind Holy Cross Church. Local women were taught needlepoint lacemaking at the convent and their lacework garnered international fame; the upstairs Kenmare Lace and Design Centre, which keeps the same hours, has displays.
They include designs for 'the most important piece of lace ever made in Ireland' (in a 19th-century critic's opinion).
