School: Kilmacoo, Avoca
- Location:
- Kilmacoo, Co. Wicklow
- Teacher: Bean Uí Chosgair
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0925, Page 329
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- XML School: Kilmacoo, Avoca
- XML Page 329
- XML “Mines”
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- The Conary mines are situated about three miles from Avoca. The Tigroney mines which are a part of the Conary mines over look the Vale of Avoca. A great many shafts and levels can still be seen in these mines and some of them are over 100 fathoms deep. The deep level runs from Cronebane to the White Bridge at the Meetings, it would be about 2 1/2 miles long.Hundreds of people worked in the mines and many of them were killed. It is wonderful how men risked their lives to earn a (lively hood)livelihood, they had to go down ladders placed one after another and secured to the side of the shaft until they reached the bottom. They carried a bunch of tallow candles fastened by a cord to the belts and a lighted candle in each mans hand. They went up along the level and as they went along they put in sets of timber to keep the sulphur from falling in on them.Some of them had to hack their way along before they could get room for each set of timber. More places were too hard to hack down. They had to bore a hole in the(continues on next page)
- Collector
- Philomena Byrne
- Gender
- Female
