Dunmore East () is a popular tourist and fishing village in

County Waterford County Waterford ( ga, Contae Phort Láirge) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region. It is named ...

, Ireland. Situated on the west side of

Waterford Harbour Waterford Harbour ( gle, Loch Dá Chaoch / Cuan Phort Láirge) is a natural harbour at the mouth of the Three Sisters; the River Nore, the River Suir and the River Barrow in Ireland. It is navigable for shipping to both Waterford and New Ros ...

on Ireland's southeastern coast, it lies within the barony of Gaultier (''Gáll Tír'' – "foreigners' land" in Irish); a reference to the influx of

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

and

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

settlers in the area.

History

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

people established a

promontory fort A promontory fort is a defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the ramparts needed. Although their dating is problematic, most seem to da ...

overlooking the sea at Shanoon (referred to in 1832 as meaning the 'Old Camp' but more likely Canon Power's Sean Uaimh, 'Old Cave')Canon P. Power, ''Place names of the Decies'', David Nutt, 1907, p. 207 at a point known for centuries as Black Nobb, where the old

pilot station Pilot Station ( esu, Tuutalgaq) is a city in Kusilvak Census Area, Alaska, United States. The population was 568 at the 2010 census, up from 550 in 2000. Geography Pilot Station is located at (61.936050, -162.883403), on the northern bank of t ...

now stands, and underneath which a cave runs. Henceforth the place was referred to as Dun Mor, the Great Fort. In 1640, Lord Power of Curraghmore, who owned a large amount of property in the area, built a castle on the cliff overlooking the strand about two hundred metres from St. Andrew's Church. The castle was falling into ruin by the middle of the next century and now just one tower remains. The old church of Killea (Cill Aodha — Aodh's Church, Aodh is Irish for Hugh) is thought to have been built in the twelfth century and one wall still stands, opposite the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church of The Holy Cross, at the top of Killea hill. In Smith's history of Waterford, the village was mentioned as being a fishing port about the year 1745. The fishermen's homes were situated in the Lower Village near the Strand Inn and boats were launched from the slip at Lawlor's Beach before the harbour was built. There is mention of a fleet of fifty fishing boats working from Dunmore East in 1776. In 1812, a decision was made at Westminster to create an entirely new landing point for passengers and the

Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...

coming to Ireland from London and southern England. The location selected for the erection of a pier was Dunmore East. In 1814, dramatic changes took place when

Alexander Nimmo Alexander Nimmo FRSE MRIA MICE HFGS (1783 – January 20, 1832) was a Scottish civil engineer and geologist active in early 19th-century Ireland. Life and career Nimmo was born in Cupar, Fife in 1783, the son of a watchmaker, and grew up i ...

, the Scottish engineer (builder of

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

's Sarsfield Bridge) commenced work on the new harbour at Dunmore. The work consisted mainly of a massive pier or quay with an elegant lighthouse at the end. Nimmo's original estimate had been £20,000 but at the time of his death in 1832 about £93,000 had been spent and the final cost was £108,000.Maria Walsh ''Dunmore East, a living history'' (2018) By then (1837) the harbour had started to silt up, and the arrival of steam meant that the winding river could be negotiated easily, so the packet station was transferred to Waterford. The great sheltered harbour then constructed meant that Dunmore East was to gradually become an important fishing port. It also then developed into a very popular tourist resort and it is now a favourite port of call for large cruise liners visiting the south-east of Ireland. The Haven Hotel, formerly the Villa Marina, was a home built by David

Malcomson Malcomson is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alexander Y. Malcomson, coal dealer from Detroit who financed Henry Ford *Paula Malcomson (born 1970), Scottish-Irish actress *Ruth Malcomson (1906–1988), Miss America in 1924 *Ma ...

of Portlaw. David married Nanette King of Waterford and he brought his new bride to live in their family home at Dunmore East. The Fisherman's Hall in the village was also built by Nanette Malcomson in memory of her son Joseph who had been a fisherman and died at a relatively young age. She donated the land for the building and established a deed of trust to build and maintain the Hall. On her specific instructions, no alcohol could be sold or consumed in the Hall. In addition, a fire was to be kept lit to warm and dry any of the fishermen who arrived to read the newspapers which were replenished daily in the reading room which is the present-day Library.

Sport

Dunmore East is home to many sporting clubs from sailing to

Gaelic Football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

. Gaultier GAA which focuses primarily on Gaelic Football is located just outside the village, across the road from Dunmore FC soccer club. Gaultier GAA was founded in 1927 and compete in the Waterford Senior Football Championship as well as catering for over 100 juvenile members. Dunmore FC was founded in the 1970s initially before being re-established in the early to mid-2000s. The

Waterford Harbour Sailing Club Waterford Harbour Sailing Club is situated in Dunmore East in the west side of Waterford Harbour. It is the largest sailing club in South East Ireland and has a membership of 400. The club was founded in 1934 at Dunmore East and occupies a locat ...

was founded in 1934.

Harbour

The harbour is one of the five designated National Fishery Harbours, and has the second highest figure for fish landings after

Killybegs Killybegs () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is the largest fishing port in the country and on the island of Ireland. It is located on the south coast of the county, north of Donegal Bay, near Donegal Town. Its Irish name ''Na Cealla Bea ...

. In the summer months it is popular with visiting yachts which have a designated pontoon. A plan was developed in 2005 by

Waterford County Council Waterford County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Phort Láirge) was the authority responsible for local government in County Waterford, Ireland. The remit of Waterford County Council also included some suburbs of the Waterford city not within t ...

to expand the harbour to accommodate more recreational marine activities. However that plan appears to have been shelved due to lack of funding. The first official woman crew member in a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (

RNLI The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...

) Lifeboat was based at Dunmore East.

Tourism

Tourism in Dunmore East is supported by boating and sailing facilities, holiday homes, traditional pubs, a golf course and several hotels. The village is home to the

with dinghy and keelboat sailing and the Dunmore East Adventure Centre. The local golf course is located on the cliff top overlooking the bay. Sea angling and Diving is catered for by Dunmore East Angling Charters. Dunmore East Beach

Dunmore East has several seafood restaurants, and there are a number of hotels in Dunmore: The Strand Inn and The Haven Hotel, a historic former Malcomson home and the Ocean Hotel. There are also caravan sites catering for motorhomes and touring caravans. Among the events held in Dunmore East is the annual bluegrass festival which takes place at the end of August. During this festival the village hosts a number of bluegrass groups over the weekend during which almost every bar becomes a music venue from 3 pm until late in the evening. Tourist walking routes have been recently opened at Dunmore East. Trails in the woods, which surround the village, consist of a series of marked paths of varying lengths. There is also a popular cliff path to Portally and on to Ballymacaw which is about 7 km in total length. This includes what may be Ireland's longest sea cave at Rathmoylan. This path starts from the car park at the Shanoon.

International relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

Dunmore East is twinned with the village of

Clohars-Carnoët Clohars-Carnoët (; ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France. The beach resort of Le Pouldu, with the beaches of Bellangenet and Kerrou, is located in the town. Geography The commune has two small harbours: ...

in France.

Transport

There is a good road connection to

Waterford City "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

Bus Éireann Bus Éireann (; "Irish Bus") is a state-owned bus and coach operator providing services throughout Ireland, with the exception of Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area, where bus services are provided by sister company Dublin Bus. It is a subsidia ...

route 354 links the village to

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

replacing the longstanding Suirway service which ceased at Halloween, 2022.

References

External links

Deep Sea Charters Dunmore EastOfficial Dunmore East Tourism Web SiteDunmore East Adventure CentreWaterford Harbour Sailing ClubDunmore East Golf ClubDunmore East Angling Charters
{{Authority control Towns and villages in County Waterford Ports and harbours of the Republic of Ireland Fishing communities in Ireland Fishing communities