Bunmahon (), also called Bonmahon, is a coastal village in

County Waterford County Waterford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the city of Waterford. ...

, Ireland, at the mouth of the

River Mahon River Mahon () flows from the Comeragh Mountains in County Waterford, Ireland. Course Falling down the 80-metre Mahon Falls and proceeding past a hawthorn "Fairy Tree", identified by ribbons tied to its branches (the tree was chopped down and ...

. During the 19th century, when copper mines operated in the area, Bonmahon was a mining village. As of the 21st century, the village and its beach lie on a tourist route.

History

Men at Bonmahon Mines County Waterford early 1900s

Evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of Ogham stone and

ringfort Ringforts or ring forts are small circular fortification, fortified settlements built during the Bronze Age, Iron Age and early Middle Ages up to about the year 1000 AD. They are found in Northern Europe, especially in Ireland. There are ...

sites in the surrounding

townland A townland (; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a traditional small land division used in Ireland and in the Western Isles of Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of medieval Gaelic origin, predating the Norman invasion, and mo ...

s of Ballynagigla and Knockmahon. Bonmahon was a mining village for much of the 19th century, and copper and lead was mined here between 1827 and 1877. Much of the village was laid-out in this period, and the local

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...

church was built in the 1820s. A temperance hall was built in the village in 1842, and this was converted during the 1850s to become St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church. The population of the village swelled to over 2,000 at that time. The village was home to a pawn shop, a creamery and a bacon factory, as well as 21 public houses. The history and mining activity of this period is covered in ''The Making and Breaking of a Mining Community'', published in 2006. One of the mine workers was Thomas Wheatley, whose son

John Wheatley John Wheatley (19 May 1869 – 12 May 1930) was a Scottish socialist politician. He was a prominent figure of the Red Clydeside era. Early life and career Wheatley was born to Thomas and Johanna Wheatley in Bonmahon, County Waterford, Irel ...

later went on to be Minister for Health for the first Labour Party government in the United Kingdom in 1924.

Places of interest

Bunmahon lies within a

UNESCO Global Geopark UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGp) are geoparks certified by the UNESCO Global Geoparks Council as meeting all the requirements for belonging to the Global Geoparks Network (GGN). The GGN is both a network of geoparks and the agency of the United Nati ...

. The

Copper Coast Geopark The Copper Coast Geopark is a designated area comprising a stretch of the southern coast of Ireland in County Waterford, extending for some 25 km of coastline from Kilfarrasy in the east to Stradbally in the west. It was the first geopark ...

operates a visitor centre in the village's former Church of Ireland church. The Copper Coast is home to several beaches and wildlife, including foxes, rabbits, and diverse bird species. The local beach is used by surfers use all year round, and a surfing school runs in the summer months. The village's Tidy Towns committee has created a boardwalk along the sand dunes, as well as working to improve access to the neighbouring cove of Tra na mBó. The beach and surrounding coast is covered by the Bonmahon Unit of the

Irish Coast Guard The Irish Coast Guard (IRCG; ) is part of the Department of Transport (Ireland), Department of Transport in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The primary roles of the Coast Guard include maritime safety and search and rescue. The ''Irish Marine Se ...

People

(1869–1930), Scottish socialist politician born in Bunmahon

References

{{Authority control Towns and villages in County Waterford Beaches of County Waterford

History

Places of interest

People

See also

References