Christmas Greetings
"Light on the Rocks"
Wishing you a wonderful happy Christmas, and a healthy, untroubled New Year in 2024!
This year again we have decided not to send Christmas cards and instead will make a donation to our nominated charity “Cystic Fibrosis Association”. As we’ve done since 2007, we have another "related" Crosshaven landscape. This picture (also on our website under News > Christmas Greeting) was taken during August this year heading out past Roche’s Point Lighthouse to Cork’s “outer” harbour.
The stone tower in background was one of those built by the Roche family as a banqueting and pleasure house. It was also the only place they could get a sight of shipping and inner Cork Harbour. During the American War of Independence (1776-83) it was “rented” to the British Military for the defence of the harbour. In 1813 the British Admiralty pointed out the dangers that vessels frequenting Cork Harbour encountered for want of a light house. The lands and tower structures were acquired from the Edward Roche in 1815 (who had been a war prisoner in Naples). The old tower was refurbished and functioning by June 1817. The new structure with buildings and tower on the cliffs was newly built and activated in 1835 and upgraded in 1865.
For those interested in “information technology” and speed of data exchange - the first of the terraced houses on the left acted as a Telegraph Station. Before the Atlantic Cable was laid in 1866 (to Valentia Island), Roches Point, Crookhaven and Cape Clear were the 3 primary locations for drop-off of secured watertight containers for “private” letters and telegraph messages on the passing Cunard liners & also North German Lloyd liners coming from North America. This ensured information was received in London and Bremen days before the ships’ arrival at port.
See our picture carousel below....
Photographs of Crosshaven area from Christmas emails of previous years