The important discovery of coal in Kilkenny happened by chance. The first coal mine was discovered by Christopher Wandesford, who owned an iron mine in Castlecomer.
When all the ore was gone, the miners struck coal in 1700. By 1802, coal mining in Castlecomer had been going strong for over a century.
In 1802, there were sixteen working pits in Castlecomer, each one producing twenty to thirty barrels of coal a day. The majority of the coal was bought by local people, who used it as fuel for their hearth fires.
Kilkenny coal was thought to be the best, as it burned for a long time, produced a lot of heat and gave off very little smoke. The small volume of smoke was very important, as many houses at this time had no chimneys.
The Miners, by Eugene Conway
This is a painting of Castlecomer miners, which hangs in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Castlecomer.
The Miners, by Eugene Conway
The Miners, by Eugene Conway
This is a painting of Castlecomer miners, which hangs in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Castlecomer.
The Miners
Working in the coal mines was considered one of the hardest jobs in the county. Miners worked long hours and rarely lived past the age of fifty, as the coal dust caused lung diseases.
It was common for the mines to collapse, as there were practically no safety measures in place, though things improved in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Coal mining in Castlecomer continued to be important until the closure of the Deerpark Mine in 1969.