Waterford Harbour

Waterford harbour has centuries of tradition based on its extensive fishery and maritime trade. Steeped in history, customs and an enviable spirit, it was there that Andrew Doherty was born and raised amongst a treasure chest of stories spun by the fishermen, sailors and their families. As an adult he began to research these accounts and, to his surprise, found many were based on fact. In this book, Doherty will take you on a fascinating journey along the harbour, introduce you to some of its most important sites and people, the area's history, and some of its most fantastic tales. Dreaded press gangs who raided whole communities for crew, the search for buried gold and a ship seized by pirates, the horror of a German bombing of the rural idyll during the Second World War - on every page of this incredible account you will learn something of the maritime community of Waterford Harbour.

Auteur

ANDREW DOHERTY'S family have lived and operated from Waterford Harbour since 1815 as fishermen, boatmen and sailors. He fished commercially for 15 years before going to college and retraining. He has written for regional and national publications and appeared on local and national radio and TV and runs a blog on maritime heritage.He is involved in several local history groups and regularly leads guided walks and has speaking engagements for a wide variety of historical societies around the SE of Ireland.

Texte du rabat

The Irish have an old phrase for the passing along of local culture and lore: 'Ó Ghlúin go Glúin', or from knee to knee. In short, that stories told to children on the knee of their elders are in turn passed along to the next generation by the same process. But in the fishing community of Waterford, these tales or yarns were told to the author while drifting for salmon, in the company of fishermen. His father and other sailors had a bit of a reputation when it came to exaggeration, but over the years he has found more than a grain of truth in many of the stories.The harbour has centuries of tradition based on its extensive fishery and maritime trade. In these tales we relive the fear of the dreaded press gangs who raided the communities for crew, join in search of buried gold when pirates seized the sailing ship 'Earl of Sandwich' and witness the horror visited on the community in WWII when a German airplane bombed the rural idyll. On every page we learn something of this community, steeped in traditions, customs and an enviable spirit.