In the dark fields north of Cork City, near Knockraha, lies a small stone vault hidden in the old graveyard of Kilquane. During the War of Independence, this place became the secret prison of the Cork IRA No. 1 Brigade — a chamber of steel door and silence where suspected informers, spies and British soldiers were held blindfolded. Released under cover of night or quietly executed and buried in the nearby Rea bog, the vault gained the grim nickname “Sing Sing”.

Today the vault is a ruin — a door with holes for air, steps descending into darkness — but the memory of what occurred here still lingers. Visitors speak of an atmosphere of dread, of chills passing through the trees, of the stillness of the place less broken than elsewhere. Some local recordings of participants mention the possibility of “ghosts being found” around the site; the very fact that they anticipated this speaks volumes.

Recent reports from visitors and paranormal investigators have included claims of rattling sounds resembling chains, as well as a general “creepy” atmosphere.