Deerpark Colliery

The Deerpark Colliery mine was originally sunk in 1924 and was the showcase of the Irish coalmining industry. Sophisticated hauling gear, giant washeries and screening systems gave access to extensive areas of untouched coal. Its name originally came from of a herd of deer that was introduced by the Wandesforde family.

Miner's Bathouse, Deerpark

In the Deerpark Colliery, there was one main road with smaller roads branching off it. Just inside the main gate, there were baths that were built in 1939. There were also various other buildings; bike sheds, offices, an ambulance shed, a forge and sawmill for making and repairing the tools that the miners used. A strong-room housed the explosive material that was used underground. There was also an area for livestock, which included horses, ponies and donkeys.

At the mouth of the coalmine there was a landing area which was built on concrete pillars. Wooden props held up the roof as a safety measure. Trams pulled the coal to the surface using a steel pulley system. Next, the coal was tipped from the tram onto a conveyor belt to be weighed, checked, graded and lastly washed.

The coal then travelled to the end of the landing to be loaded onto carts. These carts were drawn by horses, or tipped into train carriages, and then transported away. Sometimes there were huge stockpiles of coal when supply exceeded demand. In the 1920s, the Royal Commission on Coal Supply estimated that there was still about 180 million tons of coal still to be worked in the Leinster Coalfields. The daily output averaged 400 tons of coal, with 600 men and boys employed there. Production in Castlecomer reached an all time high of 96,000 tons in 1941.

Finally, in 1969 the mine was closed as it became completely uneconomical to run. They were running at a loss of £2000 per week. The mine was flooded and sealed. Buried within the Deerpark are miles of cable, rails, coal cutters, mining equipment, pumps and trams and all the paraphnalia that was associated with a coalmine.