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From the earliest times Skerries was used as
an anchorage because of its excellent natural
facilities as a harbour. As the town gets its
name from the Vikings, and because many Viking
surnames still remain in the locality, it is safe
to assume that Viking recognised its advantages
as a harbour, and settled in the area. In 1496
the King gave permission to the Prior of Holmpatrick
to build a pier. At this time Skerries was the
property of the monastery of Holmpatrick and was
known as the Port of Holmpatrick. After the reformation
the monastery and its lands became the property
of Thomas Fitzpatrick in 1565.
He was charged with the upkeep of the harbour
on which he had to spend between 200 and 300 pounds
on repairs. By 1605, when the manor of Holmpatrick
was granted to the Earl of Thomond, the harbour
is described as being in a ruined state. The harbour
remained the property of the Earl of Thomond until
1721,and though there are some records of the
harbour and pier for this period none describe
its condition or size. In 1721 the Hamilton family
purchased the Manor of Holmpatrick, and the town
and port of Skerries. In 1759 the Irish parliament
granted £2,000 to John Hamilton to enlarge and
extend the pier. Because of delays over the planning,
and the deaths of some of those involved, the
work was not finished until 1766.
Between 1767 and 1769 further petitions were
made to parliament for a grant to extend the pier
into ten feet of water at low tide so that large
ships could berth there. This work would cost
an extra £9,000. The act of union came in 1801
and this ended efforts to get aid from the Irish
parliament. Between 1800 and 1821 Hans Hamilton,
who owned the estate at this time, did extensive
repairs to the pier at his own expense. During
the next century a number of unsuccessful attempts
were made to obtian grants from the parliament
in London to improve the harbour in Skerries.
During this time the only important event regarding
the harbour was that in 1877 control passed from
the head of the Hamilton family to the Dublin
Port and Docks Board In the present century representations
for the improvement of Skerries Harbour continued,
at first to the British authorities, and later
to native Irish Governments. ventually these representations
bore fruit. In 1968 tenders were invited to build
an extension 180 feet long and 30 feet wide to
the existing pier.
In March 1969 work started and was finished
a year later. After two hundred years and appeals
to three totally different kinds of Goverment
the extension of Skerries Pier became a reality,
though not into ten feet of water as envisaged
in 1769. Skerries, which has always had a fishing
tradition and once was one of the main fishing
ports in Ireland, has only a small number of trawlers
now. In the days of sail the harbour was also
a busy trading port but with the arrival of steam
ships this trade died away. In the year 1884,
286 sailing vessels loaded and unloaded here.
Limestone from Milverton Quarries was the biggest
export, being used for building and in road making.
The Queen, a paddle steamer was the first steam
powered vessel to enter Skerries harbour. It arrived
with passengers on a day trip from Dublin on the
15th of August 1887. The last ship to load limestone
in Skerries did so in 1942.
Complete records of shipping through the harbour
are available since the Dublin Port and Docks
Board took control in 1877. In 1884 a total of
226 trading vessels passed through the harbour.
Imported were coal and "culm" (coaldust) and exported
were limestone, timber, herrings, and potatoes.
However the number of trading vessels declined
steadily over the years, as shown at ten yearly
intervals from 1884. 1894 . 92 vessels . . 1904
. 59 vessels 1914 . 28 vessels . .1924 15 vessels
1934 . 14 vessels . . 1944 . 02 vessels 1954 .
03 vessels . In 1961 three motor vessels unloaded
coal in Skerries Harbour and since then no trading
has been done.
The first lifeboat house was constructed in Skerries
in 1854. This house was replaced in 1903 by a
new one, which stands where the harbour road turns
onto Red Island. The original Skerries lifeboat,
which was called the William Maynard, was a rowboat
with a crew of ten. The lifeboat Station was closed
in 1930 but it was reopened in recent years when
the town got an inshore lifeboat.
At the turn of this century the buildings connected
with the harbour extended down to where the playground
is now situated on Red Island. Firstly there was
the Salt Works, which was later used as a coal
yard. Further along, where the bandstand is now
situated, a row of cottages housed the coastguards.
The Coastguards Station was situated in the yard
of the present lifeboat shed. This shed housed
the breeches buoy or the "Apparatus" as it was
called locally. The pole at the end of this shed,
and the stump of a similar pole with a ring beside
it, near the Captain's, were also part of the
"Apparatus". When a ship was in trouble near the
shore a line attached to a rocket was fired out
to it. This light line had heavier ropes attached
to it.
These heavy ropes were anchored on shore while
the other ends were pulled out to the ship and
attached firmly to it. A canvas seat travelled
back and forth along these ropes taking passengers
and crew off the stricken ship, one at a time.
The equipment used in this type of rescue was
the "Apparatus". Out to sea, from the back of
the harbour, is a buoy. This is especially noticeable
when it flashes its warning light at night. This
buoy, "The Perch", marks The Cross Rocks.
Back to: History of Skerries
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