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The harbour at Annalong is inextricably linked
with the prosperity of the 'The Kingdom of Mourne' which the strip of
land between the mountains and the Mourne shore is known. It was from
the little harbour hewn from the rock that thousands of tons of hard won
Mourne granite, and the agricultural
products of generations of Mourne farmers was exported. The granite was
used in some of the buildings of British cities, and to cobble (pave)
and kerb the streets. The name Annalong comes from the Irish, Ath na Long
'Ford of the ships' In the mid 1700's it was referred to in the writings
of Walter Harris as Islealong.
The harbour today shelters a few small local fishing
and pleasure boats, less than a century ago it was the home of a fleet
of coastal trading schooners and ketches, carrying cargoes from as far
afield as the Baltic. Names such as The Goldseeker owned and skippered
by William James Caren. The Nellie Bywater, the ill fated Bengullion lost
with all hands, and many more. These little ships sailed without the benefits
of today's weather forecasting, electronic equipment or satellite navigation,
relying only on a compass, perhaps a sextant and generations of accumulated
skill and knowledge.
The harbour was used to import materials to build
the Silent Valley reservoir
in 1904 a narrow gauge railway was built from the harbour to the construction
site in the mountains. Immediately north of the harbour is Annalong
Corn Mill, this is a restored water powered corn mill, it is open
to the public and is run occasionally for demonstrations.
A disaster occurred off the
coast of Annalong on Friday 13th January 1843, ten yawls set out from
Newcastle and six from Annalong on what
promised to be a fine day. The fishermen headed for an area known to today's
fishermen as the North Hard, an area of rocky ground about seven miles
offshore. A sudden storm arose enveloping the fleet in a snowstorm and
mountainous seas, despite the conditions other boats set out from both
ports, twelve men from Annalong in the rescue boats perished, in all seventy-three
men lost their lives that fateful day, leaving many widows and orphans
in both towns.
After the disaster an appeal was started, the funds
raised were divided proportionately between the two towns. Newcastle built
a row of houses above harbour, it came to be known as Widows Row. A folk
song and several poems were written to commemorate the sad occasion, and
the bravery of the rescuers who lost their own lives. |
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