Curacha/naomhóga on the eastern seaboard

gaiscioch

I was watching rowing in Sandycove yesterday and these were the boats used by Stella Maris rowing club in Ringsend (anybody know their name, by the way?). I had never seen that style before in Ireland, but have of course often seen curacha of various types in rowing competitions along the western seaboard. It got me thinking, did we have curacha/naomhóga on the eastern seaboard also? To answer that, it seems from this we did:

"Today there is something of a revival in the Irish Currach with the formation of clubs for currach racing. Many of these clubs run building courses, there are many subtly different types of currachs to be found across Ireland. These are categorised by geographical location, ranging from the Donegal ggg in the north to the Kerry in the south. There is little if any tradition remaining of the use of currach's on the east coast. We know from the historical record that currach type vessels were used extensively by tribes inhabiting the eastern seaboard" (Source)

Here's a famous clip of a round, single-person curach, a traditional boat on the Boyne, from the Hands programme on RTÉ back in the 1970s:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pnu3E8jcSlo

However, does anybody know anything more about the indigenous boats on the eastern seaboard and how, when and why they were replaced? What's the latest record we have for a curach in a traditional fishing community on the east coast?

pedroeibar1

To answer your question the boat type in your photo is a “skiff” but some call them a "gig".

The Boyne coracle you show is similar to the Wexford Cott, also well known, and used well into the 20th century for salmon netting.

I’d suggest that the currach is long gone from the East Coast. In recent years I know of one built in S. Co. Dublin in the 1930’s but that was by a hobbyist and its design was based on a Galway currach. There also was one made in Killiney in the 1960’s.

Currachs /or “canoes” were a poor man’s boat. They have survived on the West Coast because they were / are particularly suited to the conditions, light, cheap, quickly built from local material, relatively easy to handle and capable of landing on a rocky shore, and being lifted out of the water and beached a safe distance above the high tide mark. Any ‘dings’ were easily repaired with a patch of canvas and tar. They were/are ideal for the type of inshore fishing practiced by fishermen-farmers. Wooden boats were expensive, required greater skill to build/repair, needed specialised tools, are heavy and needed to be dragged up a beach, away from rocks. Piers in the poorer areas of the W coast generally came much later, a result of the Congested Districts Board and post-Famine public works.

On the East Coast there were several old harbours and more money, so wooden boats were more common/frequent. What was particular to the East Coast, Dublin Bay and in particular Dalkey from the 1600’s was a type of light wooden skiff, usually made of larch and used by local watermen known as “Hobblers”. In the 18th and 19th century days of sail, the square-rigged ships could not beat into Dublin Bay against the prevailing SW winds. As a result they had to wait offshore until a favourable wind arrived. The Hobblers raced out when they saw a ship in the offing, offering to row passengers ashore for a fee. Similarly, rival port pilots would race out, as the first to arrive usually got the pilotage job. With the advent of steam power, the need for hobblers died, the work dried up but the tradition of racing between the crews continued.

There is a tradition of this type of racing in many places, Doggett's Coat and Badge is a well-known one in London with a good history attached to it and an Irish connection. In the SW, around Iveragh, there are about a dozen local teams racing seine boats, which are bigger, heavier and have 6 oars and 12 rowers and a cox to steer / call the stroke.

Arsemageddon

This website at the link below might be of some interest...

http://www.boynecurrach.com/

dubhthach

There was a book published several years ago about various traditional boats found in Ireland, think this is the one:
http://www.collinspress.ie/traditional-boats-of-ireland.html

They seem to have a webpage up (haven't look into it much!)

http://www.tradboats.ie/

Philips in the 1680's drew a picture of a wicker Currach as used by the "Wild Irish"


Full size here:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Captain_Thomas_Phillips_-_Currach.jpg

Balmed Out

Just in relation to the stella morris club photo. The rowing is coastal (or yawl) rowing with four rowers and a cox. There are several regions partaking in the sport with Cork having an east and west cork association. Im not an expert but the general association changed boat type but the older boats are still used in non championship regattas and I think they are whats in the photo.
As far as I know the association was born by standardizing an array of older rowing disciplines so hitherto local clubs could compete on an equal footing. They sometimes row different boats on the first night of the all Ireland.

pedroeibar1

Balmed Out wrote: »

Just in relation to the stella morris club photo. The rowing is coastal (or yawl) rowing with four rowers and a cox.

A yawl is a sailing boat, two masts, the mizen mast stepped far back so that the boom overhangs the stern. Usually the tiller is in front of the mizen. On a ketch the mizenboom does not overhang the stern and the helm/tiller is forward of the mizen.

Back in the days of sail the yawl rig was used for small fishing craft, (as were the seine boats I mentioned above) and a 'yawl' was historically used as a word for any small ship's boat (a jolly boat) but that usage is archaic.

The Stella Maris boats are lineal descendants, like those in Dalkey, of the skiffs used by the Hobblers.

The seine boats too were used in fishing, the main boat and the "follower", where a net was encircled on a shoal of fish before the purse line was pulled so speed was essential.

pedroeibar1

dubhthach wrote: »

Philips in the 1680's drew a picture of a wicker Currach as used by the "Wild Irish"

The Wild Irish and indeed the more civilized sort were well practiced in currach building. O'Sullivan Beare reached the Shannon on his journey to Leitrim with his followers hungry and not very adept at swimming. They constructed a currach using osiers/sallies, killed a few of his horses and used their skins as a covering and cooked the meat for dinner. That was quite big, about 30 feet, made several crossings but a coracle made by some of his followers (mercenaries? Burkes?) sank and its occupants drowned. His vanguard made it across with several camp followers but the rearguard was jumped, much of his baggage plundered and the womenfolk driven into the river to drown. Attacked by the McEgans? I'm away from my books so doing it from memory.....

Fratton Fred

I thought this might be of interest.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-shropshire-33751536

donaghs

Yeh, looks more like a round "coracle" boat than the narrow currach.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coracle
A simple boat design like that is unlikely to be unique to any country and found in many places.

Fratton Fred

donaghs wrote: »

Yeh, looks more like a round "coracle" boat than the narrow currach.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coracle
A simple boat design like that is unlikely to be unique to any country and found in many places.

I know, I just thought it might be of interest.

dubhthach

pedroeibar1 wrote: »

Attacked by the McEgans? I'm away from my books so doing it from memory.....

As far as I recall it was the Meic Aodhagáin indeed who attack on the Shannon, they'd earlier been attacked by branch of Meic Carthaigh in Cork. In both cases example of "Hey Dublin castle, see what loyal subjects we are, don't take our lands pretty please!)

pedroeibar1

497. The ninth day of their weary journey found them beside the Shannon near Portland in the north of Tipperary; and here they rested for two nights. But their enemies began to close in on them from the Tipperary side, and no time was to be lost; so they prepared to cross the broad river opposite the castle of Kiltaroe or Redwood. Among them was a man, Dermot O'Hoolahan by name, skilled in making curraghs or hide boats. Under his direction they constructed boat-frames of boughs, interwoven with osier twigs in the usual way. They then killed twelve of their horses, and carefully husbanding the flesh for food, they finished their curraghs by covering the skeleton boats with the skins. In these they crossed the river; though at the last moment their rearguard had a sharp conflict with the sheriff of Tipperary, Donogh Mac Egan the owner of Redwood Castle, who with his party came up, and in spite of O'Sullivan's earnest expostulations, attacked them, and attempted to throw some of the women and children into the river. But O'Sullivan turned on him, and killed himself and many of his men.
From here

and


In two days they built two ships of osiers and trees, covered with the skins of twelve horses, which they killed, and on whose flesh they all fed except O'Sullivan, Dermot, and Dermot O'Houlaghan. The ship planned by Dermot was made in this way: —

Two rows of osiers were planted opposite each other, the thickest end being stuck in the ground, and the other ends bent in to meet each other's vis-a-vis, to which they were fastened with cords, and so formed the frame of the ship turned upside down. To this frame the solid planks were fixed, and seats and cross beams were fitted inside. Outside it was covered with the skins of eleven horses, and oars and dowels were fitted on. The keel was flat, both on account of the material used and in order

p.166
to avoid rocks and stones. It was twenty-six feet long, six feet broad, and five feet deep, but the prow was a little higher in order to stem the tide. The other ship, which was built under direction of the O'Malleys, was made of osiers without joinings, having a circular bottom like a shield, and sides much higher than the bottom suited. It was covered with the skin of one horse drawn over the bottom. These ships were carried by night on the men's shoulders to the bank of the Shannon called Portland, and O'Sullivan began stealthily to ferry his men across in them. Ten of the O'Malleys got into his ship, but it perished in the midst of the river with its men, being too small and imperfectly built to bear the weight. Dermot's ship, which carried thirty armed men at a time, brought the others across safely, drawing after them the horses swimming and tied to the poop.

At daybreak, after the soldiers had been got over, Donogh MacEgan, who held the adjoining port of Kiltaroe, surrounded the baggage with an armed band and began to destroy the packs, to sprinkle the earth with the blood of the sutlers and drive the terror-stricken women into the river. Thomas Burke, with about twenty pikes and as many marksmen, had been placed on guard and in ambush by O'Sullivan to protect the others until they were brought over the river, and now rousing his men, he unexpectedly attacked Donogh, whom, with fifteen of his comrades, he slew, and routed the rest, nearly all wounded. The natives, attracted by the report of the guns, flocked down to both banks of the river. Hereupon Thomas, with his guards, women, and sutlers in a great panic, tumultuously pouring into, sank the ship, but so near the shore that no one perished, and the ship being again floated carried over the guards. Some of the sutlers swam across the river; others, not being able to get over on account of the natives coming up, dispersed in different directions and hid themselves. O'Sullivan ordered the ship to be broken up lest it should prove useful to the enemy.
from here

dubhthach

Yeah's that fairly standard to use anglisced names in a translation of that age (1902 there abouts), original text is in Latin, in which case Donncha (Donagh) is transcribed in Latin as Donatus. Now adays Donagh is becoming kinda rare as a personal name with resurgence of Donncha. -gh in medieval english had same sound as hard -ch in Irish, it's only later it became silent in English. It's for this reason we have anglisacation such as Loch -> Lough and Darach -> Daragh (which shouldn't sound like Dara )

BoatMad

pedroeibar1 wrote: »

A yawl is a sailing boat, two masts, the mizen mast stepped far back so that the boom overhangs the stern. Usually the tiller is in front of the mizen. On a ketch the mizenboom does not overhang the stern and the helm/tiller is forward of the mizen.

Back in the days of sail the yawl rig was used for small fishing craft, (as were the seine boats I mentioned above) and a 'yawl' was historically used as a word for any small ship's boat (a jolly boat) but that usage is archaic.

The Stella Maris boats are lineal descendants, like those in Dalkey, of the skiffs used by the Hobblers.

The seine boats too were used in fishing, the main boat and the "follower", where a net was encircled on a shoal of fish before the purse line was pulled so speed was essential.

A yawl is defined by having the mizzen mast aft of the rudder post and was primarily a racing rule beater development. The Mizzen mast ahead of the rudder post is known as a Ketch.

There is no such thing a a yawl rig, there is a a gaff rig which was commonly fitted to yawls ( and lots of other types of boats )

my understanding is the east coast " gigs " originated in Wales ?

edit sorry , bad memory , thats the Cornish Pilot Gig, some of which are raced here

The 4 oared boat seen on the east coast , owes its origins in the Hobbler boats of the pre 1920s. They are correctly called skiffs, and their size and dimensions were standardised in the 1950s in Ireland

The term Skiff and gig can be used interchangeably , though in practice a gig is rowed while a skiff can have a mast and sails

There is very little evidence of the traditional round skin covered currach ever being used on the east coast, That design evolved because the western islands had very little in the way of wood , a problem that did not exist in the east coast

pedroeibar1

BoatMad wrote: »

A yawl is defined by having the mizzen mast aft of the rudder post and was primarily a racing rule beater development. The Mizzen mast ahead of the rudder post is known as a Ketch.

There is no such thing a a yawl rig, there is a a gaff rig which was commonly fitted to yawls ( and lots of other types of boats )

my understanding is the east coast " gigs " originated in Wales ?

edit sorry , bad memory , thats the Cornish Pilot Gig, some of which are raced here

The 4 oared boat seen on the east coast , owes its origins in the Hobbler boats of the pre 1920s. They are correctly called skiffs, and their size and dimensions were standardised in the 1950s in Ireland

The term Skiff and gig can be used interchangeably , though in practice a gig is rowed while a skiff can have a mast and sails

There is very little evidence of the traditional round skin covered currach ever being used on the east coast, That design evolved because the western islands had very little in the way of wood , a problem that did not exist in the east coast

Your definition is incorrect and it has nothing to do with racing rules which postdate yawl rigs by centuries. Racing rules were not formalised until the early 1800’s by the RYS, although arguably the Cumberland Club (forerunner of the Royal Thames) also had a role.
Actually if one wants to be that pedantic, the true definition of a yawl (from the Dutch word jol, skiff) is a small sailing boat or yacht.. According to The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea” (page 960) “The true yawl rig consists of two masts cutter-rigged (in the English meaning of the term) on the foremast with a small mizzen mast stepped abaft the rudder head.” (not rudder post).
The yawl definition I gave earlier is accurate and more comprehensible to non-sailors in a history forum.
The Wexford cot is regarded as an East Coast craft.
While there might not have been lots of trees on the western islands, there were many on the mainland, where currachs were common. The main reason for their popularity was cost and manoeuvrability, as they could easily be carried ashore, much of the west coast not having sandy beaches across which to drag a wooden boat.
A sailing skiff generally is an American term, not used this side.