Dutch lugger in Clogherhead stop

WHEN A DUTCH LUGGER dropped anchor off Clogherhead pier last week-end, it was the first time a vessel from the Netherlands had done so since 1914.

To sightseers it was something to look at and admire, but fishermen it meant the start of a new big enterprise for the village.

The foreign lugger had come to collect the herring catches of local fishermen for direct shipment to the Dutch markets and this direct link with Holland is regarded as a big step towards making Clogherhead known, both at home and abroad, as a herring port.

There are also moves afoot to restore the herring-curing industry that at one time flourished in this fishing village and older folk will remember the barrel herrings which were cured on the pier for export and the busy din of the coopers who made their own barrels.

The first step towards this goal was taken recently by the large Dublin fish-buyers, Messrs. Molloy & Co., under the supervision of Mr. Tom Boyle.

They are being aided in their efforts by their local agents, namely Messrs. Pat Lynch and Paddy Rath, both of whom foresee a progressive future in this particular trade.