The Harbour Through The Years

[Thomastown]

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I think this is the Dredger Sisyphus.There were two based in Dun Laoghaire,the other Dredger was the Faug An Ballagh (not sure of the spelling) but its name meant Lead the Way.
Does anyone remember them?

[jwdalk]

I remember two all right, they were painted a pale green and moored up in the corner of outer coal harbour beside the trawlers. I'm sure their names were Saxifrage and Sisyphus. They were certainly there until the mid to late seventies.

[jwdalk]

just found this on www.dlharbour.ie

It has always been necessary to carry out dredging in the harbour and this affected the OPW, (Office of Public Works), to permanently base dredgers in the harbour. Their last two dredgers were scrapped in the mid-1970s and since then work has been carried out by various contracted, dredging companies.
Dredgers "Saxifrage" and "Sisyphus"

The attached photograph (Courtesy of Mr. Noel Brien) shows the last two OPW vessels, Bucket Dredger "Sisyphus" and the Grab Dredger "Saxifrage", both built 1908, alongside each other at Traders' Wharf. The triple expansion steam engine of the "Sisyphus" is now housed in the National Maritime Museum, Dun Laughaire and other than other than a few artifacts in the harbour offices, everything else went to Hammond Lane, Dublin for scrap.

These old dredgers were capable, over time, of removing copious quantities although they are small and underpowered craft when compared to modern vessels. The OPW 1913-14 Annual Report stated that, "upwards of 54,000 tons of material was dredged from the harbour bed and deposited at sea." By comparison the impending dredging, by suction dredger and plough tug, is expected to remove somewhere above that order in a continuous working period of three weeks.

Jim Carter, Harbour Master

[Thomastown]

Thanks jwdalk,Great bit of info there.
I remember being down around the coal quay when I was a boy but didnt pay much attention.
There was a Dredger called The Faugh a Ballagh,would like to get some history on that.
Thanks again.

TT

[Thomastown]

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Mailboat entering the Harbour in Dun Laoghaire 1938.
Seems to have the boot down.

[Strum]

That's a great one! Yep certainly looks like it needs to put the brakes on quick!


That's a rare one I bet. Is it your own Thomastown?

[jwdalk]

Seems to be leaning to Starboard a bit as well. Do you think it's on the point of doing a handbrake turn and gently reversing to its berth?

[Thomastown]

That's a great one! Yep certainly looks like it needs to put the brakes on quick!


That's a rare one I bet. Is it your own Thomastown?

Thankfully I wasnt around then.Just plucked it from a bundle of photos that I have collected over the years.
More to follow.TT

[Thomastown]

Seems to be leaning to Starboard a bit as well. Do you think it's on the point of doing a handbrake turn and gently reversing to its berth?

I think your man down in the engine room is still shovelin coal.TT

[jaytee]

great photo, my hubby remembers the depot and the morgue in the harbour around 1960s .he thinks its where the ferry terminal is now. anyone got pics

[farmboy]

Your hubby is right about the location of the morgue, seem to remember it being beside the ferry terminal roughly where there still is a patch of grass, actually just beside the yacht club. As kids we ventured in one day and there was this massive stone table with a hole in the centre presumably to drain off the water from the body of the poor unfortunate they,d fished from the sea. There was a little gully carved in from the four corners to help with this, not a pleasant place at all.

[drummer]

great photo, my hubby remembers the depot and the morgue in the harbour around 1960s .he thinks its where the ferry terminal is now. anyone got pics

hi jaytee,i lived in the depot as a boy.i had to pass the morgue on darks nights.peter kelly

[jaytee]

jez drummer i thought i had it bad walkin the pottery road at night. its all relative

[Thomastown]

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I think this is the Dredger Sisyphus.There were two based in Dun Laoghaire,the other Dredger was the Faug An Ballagh (not sure of the spelling) but its name meant Lead the Way.
Does anyone remember them?

Sorry Folks I deleted this in error. I will put it back up.TT

[grammer]

top class photos -TT--
really unusual ------think the mailer is not going to stop

[Enviro500]

Gang,
This site is a constant source of interest and rekindling of old memories of former buddies. I spent a lot of my early days at at the Harbour probably late 1950s and I was pally with a Peter Kelly whose father was a Harbour Constable, many an evening I spent there..I wonder what happened to Peter. Around that time a boy named Lord, I think , went missing and it took about a month to find his body from the Sea..I think Peter's Father was one of the staff who dealt with the incident.Peter lived in the Coastguard houses I think.. I think we were both in Hunchie's and Mr McDonell's classes

[jaytee]

ENVIRO, look back 3 or 4 posts. your childhood friend is drummer if im not mistaken.

[Thomastown]

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Sorry I deleted this in error.
So here we go again.TT

[Thomastown]

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Hibernia or Cambria docked at Carlisle Pier.
Note the Steam Train.TT

[jwdalk]

Great photo! It's so easy to forget what an important link the mailboat was in it's heyday. Cranes, steam trains, ships, what's not to like? Do you know when the photo dates from? I'd reckon it's the 50's.

[Thomastown]

Great photo! It's so easy to forget what an important link the mailboat was in it's heyday. Cranes, steam trains, ships, what's not to like? Do you know when the photo dates from? I'd reckon it's the 50's.

I would say you are right.Late 50s I think.The Mail Boats around that time were Hibernia,Cambria ,Princess Maud and the St.David filled in sometimes when one was out of commission.TT

[Enviro500]

Thomastown,
Well theres a coincidence, I must contact Drummer and maybe call him up when I amin Dun L in Sept, that's supposing he still lives in the area. That would be real nice. I plan to be in Bakers Friday 9th Sept (Friday) at about 8pm as I am in Belfast on the 10th Sept, I will have a "straw hat" for recognition..So ALL PLEASE TAKE NOTE

Enviro

[grammer]

Super photos TT
they are a real find -
congrats

[cambria49]

Judging by the thickness of the black top on the mailboat's funnel I would date the photo no earlier than the winter of 1964/65.

Great photo! It's so easy to forget what an important link the mailboat was in it's heyday. Cranes, steam trains, ships, what's not to like? Do you know when the photo dates from? I'd reckon it's the 50's.

[jwdalk]

I think it's earlier. CIE had stopped regular steam powered services by the end of 1962. It's interesting to find ways to date a photo from clues within it.

Judging by the thickness of the black top on the mailboat's funnel I would date the photo no earlier than the winter of 1964/65.

Great photo! It's so easy to forget what an important link the mailboat was in it's heyday. Cranes, steam trains, ships, what's not to like? Do you know when the photo dates from? I'd reckon it's the 50's.