This prominent stone building on the western edge of town was once the local workhouse, built to keep and employ the destitute. Conditions were horrible. Men, women, children and the sick were segregated, their lives dominated by gruelling work. The building today is a heritage centre, which tells the powerful true tale of 'Wee Hannah' Herrity (1836–1926) and her passage through the institution. It has a cafe, a crafts shop (and craft courses), tourist information and occasional temporary exhibitions.
As the Famine took grip the workhouse was inundated with starving people. Two years after it opened in 1845, it accommodated some 600 people – double the number originally planned.