Exploring the untold secrets of Vinegar Hill
ONE OF the most iconic battlefields in Irish History, Vinegar Hill still has plenty of untold secrets to tell and they will be discussed in detail with events taking place as part of Heritage Week at Enniscorthy Library.
With the support of Wexford County Council, Vinegar Hill is the subject of the most extensive battlefield archaeology investigation that has taken place in Ireland to date. The work carried out has included historical research and mapbased analysis, landscape survey, underwater investigations, geophysical prospection and licenced detection survey.
What we’ve learned from some of this exten- sive research will be presented at special events in the library starting tomorrow evening. The first talk, entitled ‘Map My Battle: Uncovering the archaeology of Vinegar Hill’ will discuss progress so far at the site and what those involved hope to discover in the future. Battlefield archaeologist with Rubicon Heritage Services and former military curator at the National Museum of Ireland Daniel Shiels will discuss the team’s work at the Enniscorthy site thus far.
Then, for the week beginning August 28, there will be an open call to members of the public who may recall finding artefacts from battles of Enniscorthy or Vinegar Hill, looking to pinpoint exactly where items were found on a map. Along with Enniscorthy Library Service, this will be Wexford’s first interactive battle-mapping project and you can make your mark. It is not necessary to have the artefact or to know its present location, the team will simply be looking for information to help with the project. Someone will be present at the library from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday, August 28 and Wednesday August 30, and 10.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. on Tuesday, August 29 and Saturday, September 2.
Finally, the research team are collecting the folk traditions of the battles of Enniscorthy (28th May) and Vinegar Hill (21st June 1798), and are interested in hearing and recording any stories you have. You can contact them on vinegarhillbattlefield@gmail.com or see the Vinegar Hill Battlefield Facebook page.