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8Aug
When is a Wreck not a Wreck? An answer seems easy, but not always obvious. A ship that has been wrecked might be raised and then float again. It might sink again, immediately, or soon after – and declared a wreck once more. It may be repaired, and live out many more years afloat. Alternatively, […]
15Apr
Local Wexford people know it as the, ‘Graveyard of a Thousand Ships’. There are that many lost ships there, and probably some more. The primary reason for such a large amount of unfortunate losses is quite simple – traffic. This part of Ireland represents a major crossroads for shipping, of increased importance, and more fatal […]
8Aug
After all those years. We followed up on every bar-room story, endless tales by fishermen, and all of the mucky folklore that was ever recounted about this wreck – that of a submarine lying on the Arklow Bank. Probably known to many now, a much abbreviated version of the tale goes as follows. In 1917 […]
21Apr
Accurate, but defying an explanation, the announcement as it appears above, was posted in the Custom House, Dublin, on March 31, 1917. Its brevity can be partly explained by war time secrecy, and an importance in preventing the general public and the German navy becoming familiar with British naval matters. The statement did nevertheless indicate […]
16Oct
Ostendse Compagnie The ongoing research and hunt for the remains of the ship ‘Count de Belgioioso’ is fascinating story on many levels. And more, it has been an exciting journey. As much as I would love to recount the whole story here, one that would deservingly fill many pages, it is therefore much too lengthy […]
14Oct
The Atlantic Gateway (Jim Phelan 1941) When ships crossed the channel between Ireland and England during WWI, they were attacked and sunk by German submarines. The loss of ships, Irish or not, with civilians, service men and women, was not only condemned by those considered to be ‘West Brits’, but anger and a sense of […]
3Oct
A Fresh Look at an Old Story The story of the ‘Ouzel Galley’ is already out there – but is it one we can believe? Our tale will be a collection of the facts. It won’t rely on any novels or on the ramblings of members of a secret society. It may disappoint the young […]
1Oct
‘West Britain’ It was Tuesday, the 31 day of August, 1785, and just a few miles south of Dublin city, the inhabitants of the grand harbor town of Kingston were sleeping soundly in their beds. A number HM ships of the line had arrived earlier in the week for naval exercises and shore leave had […]
28Sep
Not Alexandria – The Great South Wall? There were no constructed harbours in this part of Dublin Bay before the early 1800’s. Boats, small ones that is, landed on shale and sandy ground in front of where the wonderful little harbour of Sandycove is now situated. Similarly at Bullock, there was no constructed harbour but […]
27Sep
It is often said that there is too much ‘rubbish’ information on the web. To be sure, there is rubbish but there’s rubbish everywhere. There is certainly not so much that the internet should not be used for research. This would of course be foolish. Like all vaults of information, one must discriminate and discard […]
