LOCAL HISTORY: Kilkeel Harbour’s important role in the town’s history

Employees at work at McKee’s Fish Curing Station, c.1905. A store belonging to Spillers & Bakers Ltd can be seen in the background.

Since the nineteenth century, Kilkeel harbour and the accompanying maritime industries have played an important role in the economic development of the Kilkeel area.

Before the construction of Kilkeel harbour, Annalong and Derryogue were the most important harbours in the areas. The second half of the 19th century saw the development of Kilkeel as a major fishing port and construction work on the harbour began in the 1850s. The harbour flourished and plans were made for a new pier. A survey of the proposed site in 1865 estimated the cost of construction at £5,400. Half of this amount was to be contributed by the Board of Works and the other half raised by subscription or taxation on the district, or a combination of both. The Board of Public Works eventually took the construction of the pier into its own hands under the superintendence of Mr. David Henry and, by 1868, Kilkeel’s first pier had been completed, allowing the fishing industry to flourish. In 1869 the Newry Commercial Telegraph reported that the Treasury had granted an additional sum for the purpose of constructing a basin and other works in connection with the pier.

Improvements to the harbour continued to be made from 1872. In 1885 the south pier was constructed, and the north pier extended to provide accommodation for coastal trading schooners exporting local produce. An architectural drawing illustrating the improvements and extension made to the north pier is on display in Newry and Mourne Museum. In 1886 the Old Dock was constructed. In the early days schooners traded with Liverpool, Scotland, Cornwall and Kinsale, trading goods such as potatoes, grain, granite and importing coal, etc. This trade meant that warehouses and stores began to appear in the harbour area. These included buildings belonging to Lees of Swansea, who exported potatoes, and Spillers & Bakers Ltd who were flour millers.

Kilkeel also was home to local boat builders and cooperages, as well as all the related trades. In 1875, William Paynter from St. Ives in Cornwall, established a boat-building yard at Kilkeel which built Cornish-style luggers, also known as ‘nickies’ which were more suitable for herring fishing. By 1890 the fishing industry at Kilkeel accounted for more than a third of all the herring landed in Ireland.

Workmen at McKee’s Cooperage in the 1930s. Each cooper made nine barrels in a twelve-hour day.

In 1916 the Old Dock was extended to form in inner basin, which was improved the capacity of the harbour for commercial growth. A 1918 map of the harbour on display in the Museum shows the inner basin. Also featured is the location of Lord Kilmorey’s boat house and the names of tenants of adjoining properties.

There was further expansion in 1955 when the long quay was built. The fleet grew to over 115 boats in the 1990s and a new slipway completed in 2008. Recently the rural economy has diversified with tourism and production of artisan foodstuffs and specialist crafts becoming important. However, the fishing fleet in Kilkeel remains the largest in NI today.