Pete's Irish Lighthouses

Despite the fact that I live in the same county, it is five years now since I last visited the beautiful and historic Balbriggan lighthouse   on the northern shores of county Dublin. The lighthouse is one of the earliest original structures in the country that is still operating - with an inauguration date stretching back to the 1700s - and I have always been fortunate to visit in brilliant sunshine. Sadly, over the years, the lighthouse fell into neglect and looked very dirty and dishevelled. The dome had been removed in the 1960s due to corrosion and it looked very much as though the lighthouse was destined to fall into complete disrepair. However, towards the end of August, I got a mail from Russ Rowlett of the lighthouse directory in America, asking how work on replacing the dome was progressing. To my shame, I had heard nothing about this project but, scouring the net, discovered that plans had been afoot towards the end of 2017 to install a replacement dome and restore...

This blog is mainly about lighthouses, their physical structure, history and location. The role of the lightkeeper, whereas it has been a secondary area of interest, has been neglected by me, probably for the extremely selfish reason that my family, as far back as I can remember, consisted primarily of agricultural labourers (or 'ag labs' as they are commonly known in genealogical circles) with a few fishermen thrown in for good measure. Recent correspondence with a lovely lady named Heather Walker has focussed my attention on the role of the lightkeeper. She is descended from an Irish lightkeeping dynasty - the Redmonds - that scanned Irish waters in the nineteenth century. Trying to help to unravel the various branches of the family has been akin to a murder mystery puzzle and great fun. I sometimes wish for the solitary life of the keeper but this may well be pure romanticism on my part. The Sheeps Head peninsula in West Cork is heaven on earth when seen on a sunny summ...