NEWS
Up coming event
1st September 2007 – Heritage Week Event, Glendalough Mining Seminar and Fieldtrip, Brockagh Centre and Glendalough
A morning of talks in the Brockagh Centre, followed by a field trip to the mine site at the Upper Lake at Glendalough will take place on Saturday 1st September as part of Heritage Week. Admission is free for the day and all are welcome.
The programme is as follows:
Registration 9.30
10.00: Dr. Peadar McArdle, Director of the Geological Survey of Ireland. Geology and mineralisation of the Wicklow granite
10.30:Mr. Rob Goodbody, local historian. History of lead mining in the Wicklow mountains
11.00 Dr. Martin Critchley, Chairperson of Mining Heritage Trust of Ireland. Mining heritage of Glendalough and Glendasan
11.30 Joan Kavanagh, local historian and GMHP Committee member. Conservation and presentation of the mining heritage of Glendalough and Glendasan
12.30:Lunch
2.30 Meet at the Upper Lake Car Park, Glendalough for fieldtrip to mine site at Upper Lake
Booking not essential but appreciated. Those attending may come for the day’s events or for specific talks or just the fieldtrip.
Enquiries can be made by contacting:
Pat Casey, Glendalough Hotel, Telephone: 0404 45135 ; Fax: 0404 45142 ; Email: patcasey@glendaloughhotel.ie
NEWS ARCHIVE
3rd June 2007 – Feast of St. Kevin
June 1957 saw the closure of the mines in Glendasan, known at that time as St. Kevin’s Lead and Zinc Mine. The local committee celebrating the life of St. Kevin requested the GMHP to lead a walk to Glendasan Mine to commemorate St. Kevin and the miners. A walk in the Footsteps of the Miners attracted a group of walkers who were led by Joan Kavanagh who gave a brief history of the Glendalough mines and the Glendasan mines in particular.
13th April 2007 – Miners ’Reunion Dinner
The sixth annual Miners’ Reunion Dinner was held in Lynham’s Hotel on Friday 13th April. Over 150 people attended the dinner and were addressed by GMHP Committee Chairman Pat Casey on the work of the committee to date. Joan Kavanagh also briefly spoke on the history of the mines and the benefits to the local community in developing the mines as a tourist attraction.
22nd January 2007 – 50th anniversary of death of Jim Mernagh
To mark the 50th anniversary of the tragic death of Jim Mernagh on 22nd January 1957 the Glendalough Mining Heritage Project marked the occasion with the unveiling of a stone at the entrance to Foxrock Mine at Glendasan.
On the night of the 21st January Jim Mernagh and Robert Carter entered the Fox Rock tunnel on the night shift. Both men were locals and Jim, aged only 24, was married with two daughters.
As the shift progressed they were drilling into the rock face. They met a crack in the rock and the drill apparently hit a device which had previously failed to explode. The device blew up and both men were thrown to the ground. Robert Carter tried to give assistance to Jim Mernagh, but was unable to do so due to his own injuries. He walked the mile and a half down the tunnel to the entrance and raised the alarm. When his fellow miners reached the spot where the explosion had occurred they found Jim Mernagh dead from his injuries. Robert Carter spent months in hospital and while he recovered he still suffers from the effects the explosion had on his lungs.
The stone was unveiled in the presence of members of the Mining Heritage Project committee and Jim’s two daughters, Jane Kenny and May Murphy.
8th December 2006
An exciting new documentary DVD was released on 7th of December 2006. For the first time on DVD, many of the former Glendalough miners recall their memories of working in the mines. Featuring interviews with locals, a geology expert and a mining historian, the documentary presents a balanced view of the life and times of the Glendalough mines.
DVD Launch night details
Venue: The Glendalough Hotel, Glendalough, Co. Wicklow
Date: Thursday 7th December 2006
Time: 8 pm
All are welcome!
