The Herring Boom of the 50's & 60's

Prologue

There was a time when Dunmore East stood at the very centre of the herring world. For a brief but unforgettable period, the shoals gathered off the south-east coast in such abundance that the harbour filled, fortunes were made and lost, and the quiet rhythms of village life were overtaken by the urgency of the sea.

What followed was not simply a story of fishing, but of people—skippers and crews, buyers and officials—drawn into a complex web of opportunity, rivalry, law, and survival. Foreign fleets arrived, markets expanded and collapsed, and a small harbour found itself grappling with questions of ownership, fairness, and identity that reached far beyond its pier walls.

This is the story of those years. Of crowded quays and winter seas, of disputes fought in courtrooms and on the water, of organisation born from chaos, and of a fishery that shaped a community before quietly slipping away. It is a chapter in Dunmore East’s history when the herring ruled everything—and nothing was ever quite the same again.

Fishing during the 1950s

By the middle years of the 1950s, the south coast of Ireland was on the threshold of dramatic change. The great herring shoals had returned in strength, and with them came a surge in landings that transformed ports long accustomed to quieter rhythms. In 1954, Dunmore East and Passage East recorded sharp increases in herring landings, signalling the beginning of what would soon be known locally as the herring years.

Yet abundance arrived before preparedness. Markets had not developed at the same pace as the fishery itself, and prices collapsed almost as quickly as the catches rose. At times, herring fetched as little as £1.50 per cran. Disposal became a problem, and in the strange paradox of plenty, boats were often forced to remain in harbour while fish lay thick offshore. It was a difficult period for skippers and crews, who saw opportunity slipping away even as nets came up heavy.

The situation shifted decisively in 1956. That year, Dunmore East emerged as the foremost herring port in the country, with landings exceeding 40,000 crans. Most of the catch was shipped fresh to the United Kingdom, while significant quantities were cured and sent onward to Holland. This marked the true beginning of the Dunmore East herring ‘bonanza’. Buyers began to arrive in numbers—Dutch, German, and British agents appearing on the quayside, their presence a sign that Dunmore had become part of a much wider commercial network.

The annual report of the Fisheries Division of the Department of Lands for 1956 pointed to one decisive advantage: transport. A fast and efficient route from Waterford to the United Kingdom allowed Irish herring to reach distant markets with remarkable speed. Fish were carried across the Irish Sea from Rosslare to Fishguard aboard the British Rail ship St David, and within forty-eight hours of being landed at Dunmore East, a full lorry load of fresh herring could be sold at Billingsgate Market in London.

Continental demand, however, remained uncertain. Prices were closely tied to the fortunes of the North Sea fisheries, and heavy catches there often depressed values for Dunmore herring. Along the south coast, the lack of local processing facilities remained a serious handicap. An attempt to address this came in 1957, when a joint Irish and German company established a small fish cannery at Dunmore East. The venture proved short-lived and failed to make any lasting impact on the market.

As the shoals continued to gather, so too did the fleets. Vessels arrived from Germany, the Netherlands, France, Poland, and Russia, joining smaller boats from England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, along with an ever-growing number of Irish craft from ports around the coast. Many British vessels began landing directly at Dunmore East, adding to congestion in an already crowded harbour and compounding marketing difficulties. Some skippers chose instead to steam on to Milford Haven in Wales, where prices, they claimed, were more reliable than those offered in Dunmore.

The U.K. Vessels and the Continental Fleets

The presence of foreign vessels became a growing source of tension. Local skippers protested that Irish boats landing into United Kingdom ports were subject to a ten per cent levy, and argued that a reciprocal charge should apply to UK vessels landing their catches at Dunmore East. The issue became a point of resentment, particularly as competition on the quayside intensified.

Dutch and German vessels played a dual role. Not only did they land their own herring, but their owners or agents also purchased large quantities from local boats. These fish were cured and barrelled at Dunmore East, Passage East, and Duncannon before being shipped back to the continent. At times, as many as a hundred Dutch and German ‘luggers’ lay at anchor off Dunmore East and throughout the Waterford Harbour estuary—a striking and unfamiliar sight that soon became part of the everyday seascape.

For a brief but unforgettable period, Dunmore East stood at the centre of an international fishery. Opportunity, pressure, prosperity, and uncertainty all arrived together on the tide, shaping the harbour and its people in ways that would be felt long after the great shoals had moved on.

Types of Gear in Use

In the early 1950s, the methods used by the fleets fishing the south coast reflected long-established traditions. Irish boats relied almost entirely on the drift net, a familiar and trusted form of gear, while visiting Scottish vessels worked ring nets with notable skill. These differences in approach would soon begin to narrow, driven by experiment, necessity, and the quiet confidence of individual fishermen willing to try something new.

In March 1955, two such men took a decisive step. Michael Doran, a Wexford fisherman working a small boat named Dewy Rose, joined forces with Jimmy Madron of Cornwall, skipper of the Renovelle. Both were convinced that herring could be taken successfully with a modified Danish seine net—small-meshed cotton gear normally used in the whiting fishery. Putting theory into practice, they carried out experimental fishing in Bannow Bay, where the results were immediately encouraging. Within a short time, the new method was adopted by much of the Irish fleet.

Boats using Danish seines became known locally as ‘coil-a-side boats’, a reference to the way the long seine ropes were shot from the side of the vessel. Though effective, the dominance of the seine net proved short-lived. Before long, it was overtaken by another method already proven by the Scots—the ring net.

Scottish skippers brought with them not only their vessels but generations of experience. Many had fished extensively around both the Irish and Scottish coasts, and their success was quickly evident. In addition to the visiting boats, Scottish crewmen arrived in numbers and signed on with local vessels for the duration of the season, further transferring skills and knowledge into the Dunmore fishery.

In Herring Fishermen of Kintyre and Ayrshire, Angus Martin records that Campbeltown fishermen first came to Dunmore East in the mid-1950s with three pairs of ring-netters: Silver Fern and Elizmor, Arctic Moon and Arctic Star, and Silver Lining and Integrity. These vessels were permitted to fish within Irish limits and land their catches at Dunmore East after their skippers succeeded in having them re-registered in Ireland under arrangements with Dublin fish companies. The practice attracted strong criticism from Comhlachas Iascaigh Mhara, who argued that it was becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish between genuinely Irish vessels and those effectively operating as Scottish boats under Irish registration.

There was little doubt about the effectiveness of the ring-netters. They consistently out-fished local boats still working Danish seines or traditional drift nets, and it was inevitable that Irish skippers would follow suit. Before long, ring nets were being successfully adopted across the fleet.

The latter half of the 1950s marked a period of rapid innovation. During the 1956–57 season, Alan Glanville arrived in Dunmore East from Brixham with the 50-foot Marnet. He began fishing with a Danish bottom—or wing—trawl and became the first skipper in the area to take herring using this type of gear. According to the Irish Fishing and Fish Trades Gazette of March 1959, Glanville, working with John Flemming, landed 286 crans over five nights and grossed more than £934—almost certainly a record for a two-man crew.

In 1958, Glanville established the Dunmore Marine Supply Company, and by 1960 he had become agent for the German net maker Hermann Engel, importing Engel mid-water trawls into Ireland. The impact was immediate and dramatic. Fishermen along the coast would later recall that the Engel net played a crucial role in reviving the herring fishery and in driving the expansion of the Irish pelagic fleet. Over the next twenty-five years, Glanville’s company was reputed to have sold more than 1,000 mid-water herring trawls—over 700 of them in southern Ireland, including 200 to Killybegs alone—along with nearly 200 to Scotland, 150 to Northern Ireland, and more than 200 bottom trawls nationwide.

Bord Iascaigh Mhara also took an active role in encouraging innovation. In 1957, the Board arranged for Dan Griffin of Schull, skipper of the 70-foot Resolution, to experiment with a specially designed bottom trawl off Dunmore East. Griffin was a highly skilled fisherman, but a Norwegian skipper was engaged to supervise the fitting and use of the gear. The trials proved successful, and local skippers—by now well accustomed to adapting new techniques—quickly mastered the method. Bottom trawls were particularly effective during the post-Christmas period, when herring shoals moved onto the seabed to spawn.

This same period saw the introduction of the Larsen, or pelagic, trawl, a system that had been used with success by Danish fishermen for many years. Its arrival added yet another layer to an already complex and evolving fishery.

Not all change went unchallenged. Buyers and fishermen alike debated the quality of herring taken by the different methods. Some insisted that fish ‘dragged through the water for hours’—whether by bottom or mid-water trawl—were inferior to those caught by ring nets or drift nets. Ring-netted and drift-netted herring retained their scales, appeared brighter, and were widely regarded as superior to the ‘washed’ or ‘drowned’ fish taken by trawls. Arguments also arose over the relative merits of the Engel and Larsen nets. In time, however, it became clear that Danish fishermen were equally adept with either, and they earned a reputation across Europe as masters of the herring fishery.

Fishing Tragedies

The success of the south coast herring fishery was not achieved without cost. Beneath the figures of rising landings and expanding fleets lay a sequence of losses that left deep marks on fishing communities and were not easily forgotten.

In February 1957, thirteen fishermen from Kilmore Quay lost their lives when the 37-foot vessel Naomh Seosamh, skippered by John Roche of Fethard-on-Sea, sank off Hook Head while returning to port with forty crans of herring aboard. The disaster was witnessed from Hook Lighthouse, whose keepers managed to rescue a single survivor. For the families left behind, and for neighbouring ports that knew the men well, the event cast a long shadow over what had otherwise been a season of promise.

Less than a year later, in January 1958, tragedy struck again. The Killybegs boat Jack Buchan, skippered by George Buchan of Downings, was lost as it left Dunmore East harbour in appalling weather, bound for shelter in Waterford after discharging a catch of herring. Outside the harbour entrance, the vessel was caught by a massive sea and capsized. The loss was witnessed in full daylight by a large crowd gathered on the pier, a circumstance that etched the scene into local memory with particular force.

Reporting on the disaster, the Irish Fishing and Fish Trades Gazette paid tribute to the courage and seamanship of Tommy Watson and Patrick Cunningham of the 56-foot Killybegs trawler Mairéad, who succeeded in rescuing several men from the towering seas. It also recorded the actions of Skipper Hickey of the Arklow vessel Ros Mór, who narrowly avoided losing his own boat as he searched among the rocks for survivors. Despite these efforts, six fishermen from Donegal were lost. For Dunmore East, the memory of that day would endure long after the harbour returned to its usual bustle.

Link to: The Sinking of the Jack Buchan 

Friction with the ‘Northern’ Vessels

As the fishery expanded through the 1950s, it also became a source of growing friction. The increasing presence of vessels from the Northern Ireland ports of Kilkeel, Portavogie, and Ardglass gave rise to persistent disputes between fishermen, buyers, and authorities on both sides of the border.

These ‘Northern boats’, as they were known locally, were powerful vessels, typically fitted with engines of between 150 and 200 horsepower. Compared to the smaller and less powerful southern boats, they were regarded as highly efficient, capable of towing faster and carrying larger catches. Some buyers maintained that they also landed better quality herring, a claim that further inflamed tensions. Northern boats were often favoured in the market, and there were occasions when their catches were sold twice in a single day, while southern boats struggled to find buyers at all.

Southern fishermen also believed that their northern counterparts benefited from government subsidies of £11 per day at sea. At a time when a boat’s weekly expenses might amount to little more than £50, such payments allowed northern skippers to accept lower prices and still return home with a satisfactory wage. These perceived inequalities bred resentment and frustration, which smouldered beneath the surface for several seasons.

The situation came to a head early in 1959, when buyers, following protests from local skippers, refused to purchase a catch offered by Gerry Doyle, skipper of the 60-foot Kilkeel trawler Coropsis. It was alleged that the fish had been taken inside the three-mile limit by a vessel registered in the North, rendering the catch illegal. The Coropsis departed Dunmore East and landed its fish in Milford Haven. Though tempers ran high, the remainder of the season passed without open violence.

The 1960 fishery proved particularly successful. Ninety-five Irish-based vessels took part, alongside boats from Scotland, Northern Ireland, and the south-east of England. The sheer scale of the fleet, together with visiting luggers, placed enormous pressure on the small harbour at Dunmore East. At the height of the season, the old saying that one could “walk across the harbour on herring boats” was scarcely an exaggeration.

Rising Catches in the Late 1950s

By the end of the decade, Dunmore East had become a focal point for herring fishermen from around the Irish coast. Any skipper with an interest in the fishery was drawn there, and the continuing abundance of shoals ensured the presence of foreign fleets as well. The small Irish Naval Service found itself increasingly active, as continental and British vessels were repeatedly tempted to fish inside the limits.

In 1958, the Danish drifter Swift Wing was arrested by the LÉ Macha while fishing off Tramore and was fined £425. Later that year, the St Ives drifter J. B. S. was also detained and fined £20, ordered to pay £25 in expenses, and had its catch and gear confiscated. The Macha went on to arrest four French trawlers, all of which were convicted of illegal fishing, as well as the Dutch trawler Frank Vrolijk, though the latter was ultimately acquitted.

During the 1960–61 winter fishery, some ninety vessels participated, employing ring nets as well as mid-water and bottom trawls. Two small Cornish purse seiners, Renovelle and Sweet Promise, skippered by Jimmy Madron and John Stevens respectively, returned to the fishery over a number of seasons with reasonable success.

By the early 1960s, however, the fishery began to falter as herring became scarcer. At the start of the 1961–62 season, the Fisheries Division of the Department of Lands deployed its new research vessel Cú Feasa to assist the fleet in locating the elusive shoals. Built in Deest, Holland, and launched in March 1960, the vessel was equipped with modern electronic detection systems, including ELAC and ASDIC sounders—technology not yet common on Irish herring boats. It was hoped that the ship would be particularly useful early in the season, when shoals were dispersed.

Although Cú Feasa continued to assist the fleet for several years, local skippers soon became sufficiently skilled in locating herring on their own. In time, the fishery once again relied less on innovation from ashore and more on the judgement, experience, and instinct of the men at sea.

1961–1967

Changes in the Baselines and the Continental Fleets

The alteration of Ireland’s fishery baselines in 1960 marked a decisive turning point for the south coast herring fishery. With the extension of limits, continental fleets were abruptly excluded from key spawning grounds that they had fished for years. Deprived of direct access, buyers from the Netherlands and Germany, in particular, were compelled to source their herring from Irish vessels landing at Dunmore East.

Many of these companies responded quickly. Some dispatched their own representatives to the ports, while others appointed local agents to purchase on their behalf. Continental firms also sent their fishing vessels—luggers—to Dunmore East and Passage East, where herring were cured on board before being transhipped back to the continent. Dutch buyers such as Bolderheij, Vrolyk, Parlevliet, Van der Pleas, Van der Swan, Verboon, Koelewijn, and Kraakestein became familiar figures on the quayside, remaining in the village for the duration of the season and contributing significantly to the local economy.

During these years, Dunmore East acquired a distinctly cosmopolitan character. Crews and shore workers of many nationalities mixed freely in pubs and hotels, lending the village an atmosphere unlike any other period in its history. Continental vessels typically fished outside the limits during daylight hours and returned to harbour at night to anchor or to take on supplies of herring bought by their agents from local boats. Not all resisted temptation. Complaints of poaching were widespread along the coast from Dunmore East to Kinsale, and naval patrols made a number of arrests in the years that followed.

Throughout the early 1960s, most herring landed were salted, barrelled, and exported to Holland, Germany, France, Poland, Russia, and the Scandinavian countries. The United Kingdom and France, meanwhile, absorbed large quantities of fresh herring. Buyers operating out of Dunmore East maintained strong links with markets in Milford Haven and London. Men such as Paddy O’Toole, John Baldwin, George Roche, Roger Shipsey, Nicky Kervick, Willie Furlong of Kilmore Quay, and Mickey and Dermot McSweeney of Baltimore regularly bought fresh fish on the quay and had it on sale in London the following day.

Herring destined for the fresh market were packed in three-stone boxes and layered with ice. Most of the boxes were manufactured by Blunnie of Kilrush, and at the start of each season they were stacked throughout the harbour. It was a familiar sight to see Dunmore East or Passage East filled with boxes and barrels in anticipation of the first landings. In March 1960, an additional outlet was created with the establishment of a cannery in Kinsale, allowing canned herring from Dunmore East to be sold on the Irish market.

The ‘Freshing’ Market

As the season advanced into January and February, much of the catch consisted of herring on the point of spawning. These so-called “mazy” herring were often in poor condition. During discharge, roe and milt spilled freely, leaving fish that looked anything but appealing.

It was Paddy O’Toole, a buyer specialising in the UK fresh market, who introduced what was then regarded as a remarkable innovation: a mechanical washing machine. The device, resembling a cement mixer laid on its side, caused considerable excitement on the pier. Fish that emerged dull and coated with spawn were transformed into clean, gleaming herring. On the Billingsgate market, these washed fish commanded higher prices, though some buyers refused them outright, insisting they did not retain true freshness.

Demand for fresh herring in the United Kingdom remained strong in the early 1960s. Scottish companies sent their own agents to Dunmore East, among them Jack Chivas of Aberdeen and Jackie Parks of Fraserburgh, both of whom arrived at the start of each season with their own lorries. The home market was also significant. Dublin wholesalers such as H. J. Nolans, Mulloys, Costal, Clayton Love, and Hanlons bought heavily for city customers, while buyers like ‘Big’ Michael Ralfe of Tuam and Mickey Fitzgerald of Athlone distributed fresh herring throughout the Midlands.

Yet this trade, so vital for so many years, gradually declined as the decade progressed. Rising living standards and changing tastes led consumers to favour what were seen as more refined products, and the humble, bony herring began to lose its place on the table.

Increased Problems with the Northern Boats and the Disposal of Catches in the Early 1960s

Vessels from the Northern Ireland ports of Kilkeel, Ardglass, Annalong, and Portavogie had long fished for herring around the Irish coast and were well known off the south-east. For generations, families such as the Chambers, McCullaghs, McAlindens, Heaneys, and Doyles spent winter after winter on the herring grounds, landing their catches either at Dunmore East or across the water at Milford Haven. Their presence, though familiar, became increasingly contentious as pressures on the fishery intensified.

Southern fishermen voiced growing resentment at what they saw as preferential treatment being extended to Northern boats by local buyers. Many maintained that Northern-registered vessels had no right to fish within Irish limits, a claim firmly rejected by the Irish Government. Official statements made it clear that Northern boats were legally entitled to fish off the south-east coast and to land their catches at any port, and that they would be afforded protection should they require it.

The bitterness that had simmered throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s finally surfaced during the 1961–62 season. Southern fishermen, acting collectively, attempted to prevent Northern boats from landing their catches by blockading Dunmore East harbour. The action attracted national attention and achieved its immediate purpose: most Northern vessels departed without incident and returned home. Some, however, continued to fish south of Dunmore East, choosing to land their catches at Milford Haven or Holyhead instead.

Resentment toward the Northern boats was only one of several grievances. Southern skippers were equally frustrated by the disorderly system under which herring was sold at Dunmore East. Shoals had become harder to locate, prices remained consistently poor, and even when fish were caught, disposal was far from assured. Many of the skippers who fished herring during the winter months also worked whitefish fisheries for the remainder of the year and sold their catches through Dublin wholesalers. These firms sent their own auctioneers or agents to manage sales for their vessels and, in practice, many skippers were tied to them.

Further complications arose for those who had purchased vessels with financial assistance from Bord Iascaigh Mhara, as they were required to sell their catches through the local BIM agent, George Roche. Some auctioneers not only sold herring but also purchased it on behalf of continental buyers. Fishermen complained bitterly about a system in which an agent could buy a catch from a boat, sell it on to a foreign company, and receive commission at both ends of the transaction. Many felt that such arrangements worked against their interests.

Frustration ran so deep that some skippers chose to auction their own fish. At times, as many as ten different auctioneers operated during a single season, each representing different boats. Inevitably, the presence of so many intermediaries led to disagreements, accusations of price rings, and persistent claims of price fixing.

These tensions—rooted in poor prices, chaotic sales practices, and continuing resentment over the Northern boats—came to a head in 1962. That year, fishermen gathered at a meeting in Dooley’s Hotel in Waterford to discuss the future of the fishery. Out of that meeting came a decision to form a fishermen’s co-operative, dedicated to protecting the interests of those working the herring grounds off the south-east coast.

The driving force behind the initiative was Michael Doran of Wexford, then skipper of the Lustre, who played a central role in organising the meeting and shaping the proposal. The new body was formally registered as the South and East Coast Fishermen’s Co-operative Society Limited under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act of 1893 on 30 October 1962. The elected committee comprised Laurence Lett, Joseph Scanlan, William Bates, William J. Power, Stephen Whittle, Kevin P. Mallin, Patrick Griffin, with M. W. Keller appointed Secretary.

The co-operative—soon known simply as SECFA—set out with a clear and practical purpose: to promote co-operative effort among Irish fishermen operating along the south and south-east coasts. Support was swift and widespread. Within months of its formation, SECFA had begun organising its own auctions and soon assumed responsibility for the majority of herring sales along the coast. Its clerical staff initially worked from a small hut overlooking Dunmore East harbour, and auctions were conducted by Laurence Lett, elected Chairman at the co-op’s founding, or by Jack McGrath of Dunmore East.

In time, SECFA brought a measure of order and collective strength to a fishery that had been marked by uncertainty and division—an achievement that would shape its fortunes for years to come.

The 1962–63 Dispute

The 1962–63 season began quietly enough. In the weeks before Christmas, the fishery was worked exclusively by southern boats, and the early fishing passed without incident. Matters changed in January 1963, when ten Northern boats arrived on the grounds. Four immediately began fishing and proceeded directly to Holyhead with their catches. The remaining six steamed into Dunmore East, making it known that they wished to enter into discussions with their southern counterparts.

Speaking on their behalf, Victor Chambers, skipper of the Green Pastures, stated that the Northern skippers were seeking an arrangement that would allow both fleets to fish without conflict. Their arrival, however, drew intense media attention. National newspapers descended on Dunmore East, and for a time the small harbour became the focus of a dispute that resonated far beyond the fishing grounds.

Local reaction was swift and hostile. SECFA organised a protest march along the pier, blockaded the port, and called a strike. Michael Doran was widely reported as the strike leader and the principal organiser of the protest. During the night, the mooring ropes of several vessels were cut and boats were set adrift within the harbour, though no serious damage was reported. Laurence Lett was quoted in the press as stating that there was no room in Dunmore East for two fleets.

The secretary of the Ulster Fishermen’s Association, Jack Boyle, insisted that the Northern vessels were seeking a peaceful resolution and were prepared to consider quota arrangements that might balance the interests of larger, more powerful boats against those of the smaller southern fleet. SECFA, for its part, stressed that the dispute was not political. Its members maintained that Northern boats had no right to fish within Irish territorial waters because they formed part of the UK fleet and benefited from UK subsidies. These subsidies, they argued, placed southern fishermen at an unfair disadvantage. It was repeatedly pointed out that if Northern skippers chose to register their vessels in Ireland, they would be free to land their catches at Dunmore East.

Following the confrontation, the Northern boats were permitted to proceed up the coast to Waterford, where they tied up under Garda protection.

The fishermen’s strike, and the possibility that it might continue, placed buyers in a difficult position. Many had contractual obligations to customers and no fish to supply. In response, they formed a Herring Merchants Association and appointed Willie Furlong of Kilmore Quay as their spokesman. The association declared that while its members were entitled to buy herring from any vessel legally permitted to land, none would purchase further fish until a State auctioneer was appointed at Dunmore East. Such an auctioneer, they argued, should be responsible for selling the catches of all vessels legally entitled to land in the port.

This stance created a stand-off between fishermen and buyers, and the fishery effectively came to a halt. For the Government, the situation was deeply embarrassing. At the time, efforts were underway to improve relations with Stormont, and a press statement was issued emphasising that there should be no boundaries between Northern and Southern fishermen. It reaffirmed that the arrangements allowing Northern vessels to fish within Irish waters, as had applied since 1959, were still in force.

In an attempt to restore order, Brian Lenihan, then Parliamentary Secretary at the Department of Lands with responsibility for fisheries, travelled to Waterford accompanied by senior civil servants and political representatives. A series of meetings was hastily convened in the Ocean Hotel in Dunmore East, with extensive media coverage. Despite sustained efforts, no agreement could be reached that would have allowed the Northern boats to remain in the fishery and land their catches at southern ports. Disappointed by the outcome, the Northern skippers decided to return home, indicating that they would review the position before the following season.

Support for SECFA’s actions was not universal. Messages backing the Northern skippers were received from Kinsale Urban District Council and the Kinsale Harbour Commissioners, both of whom stated that Northern vessels were welcome to land catches in their harbour. In the aftermath of the failed talks, the Herring Merchants Association reached an agreement with SECFA and resumed buying fish. This was on the understanding that a State auctioneer and a port officer would be appointed as soon as the necessary legislation was enacted, and that skippers would retain the right to sell through an auctioneer of their choosing.

With the departure of the Northern fleet, the strike ended and fishing resumed for the remainder of the season. The fishery itself, however, proved disappointing. Shoal distribution during the troubled 1962–63 season was highly unusual. The main pre-Christmas fishery took place southwest of Hook Head rather than at Baginbun, while in January the shoals moved offshore into deep water—around seventy metres—off Mine Head, an unexpected and puzzling migration.

Following the strong revival of the late 1950s, when Irish landings had reached approximately 10,000 tonnes per season and nearly one hundred boats participated, catches declined sharply in the early 1960s. The downturn was widely attributed to a sudden reduction in stock, caused by the heavy exploitation of the herring by continental fleets during the years 1958 to 1961.

The Reappearance of the Northern Fleet

By the winter of 1963–64, interest in the south-east herring fishery had waned considerably. Only thirty-seven vessels took part, and although a small number of Northern boats returned to the grounds, they chose to land their catches at Milford Haven. There was no confrontation with southern fishermen, and the season passed quietly. Total landings by the Irish fleet fell to approximately 3,800 tonnes, almost half of which was exported fresh to markets in the United Kingdom.

A further decline followed in 1964–65. Only twenty-four vessels participated, landing less than 3,000 tonnes. Once again, Northern boats did not attend, though rumours circulated at the start of the season that they intended to fish off Dunmore East. These reports prompted the Irish Fishermen’s Association and SECFA to convene a joint meeting in Dublin in October 1964. Following that meeting, a statement was issued, signed by Jim Orange, Secretary of the IFA, and Maurice Keller, Acting Secretary of SECFA. It declared:

This meeting rejects the claim of Northern Ireland fishermen to a right to fish in the territorial waters of the Republic and reaffirms its resolve to use every constitutional means available to ensure that our territorial waters are retained exclusively for the benefit of Irish fishing vessels. It is stressed that this resolution is made solely to protect the livelihood and interests of fishermen in the Republic.

The subsequent season passed without incident. Much of the early fishing took place very close inshore, with significant catches coming from the estuary of Waterford Harbour. During the main season, from December to early February, shoals were located over a broader area extending from the Keeragh Islands off the south Wexford coast to Mine Head in County Waterford.

The Increasing Importance of SECFA

Since its establishment in 1962, SECFA had become deeply involved in the day-to-day management of the fishery. It succeeded in uniting the majority of southern herring fishermen into a single, effective organisation and played a central role in bringing order and stability to what had previously been a fragmented system. One of its most significant achievements was the reform of auctioning practices.

A local port committee was established at Dunmore East, representing both fishermen and buyers. This body introduced a comprehensive set of rules governing the operation of the fishery. Fixed auction times were set, and clear regulations defined how and when catches could be sold. Sales were conducted in rotation, based on the order in which vessels tied up at the pier, and each auction was preceded by the display of a sample of not fewer than fifty herring. Samples were retained after the auction to allow for the resolution of any disputes concerning quality or quantity.

Formal arbitration procedures were introduced, and at times of weak markets, nightly quotas were imposed to prevent excessive landings. SECFA and the port committee also introduced a voluntary conservation measure, prohibiting fishing at weekends. The final auction was held at 14:00 on Saturdays, after which the port was closed until 16:00 on Sundays. This arrangement was later formalised through a national by-law.

Although Northern vessels did not attempt to land herring at Dunmore East during this period, a small number continued to fish off the south-east coast in 1963 and 1964, landing their catches at Milford Haven. Their presence was generally tolerated, attracting attention only when their landings affected prices for fresh herring at Dunmore East.

The 1965–66 Disputes

The relative calm was broken in late December 1965. Two Northern boats, Castle Bay II and Castle Hill, skippered respectively by Frank McAlinden and Gordon Heaney, had been fishing off Dunmore East and intended to return to Milford Haven. Severe weather made the crossing impossible, and both vessels sought shelter at Passage East.

The bad weather persisted for several days. During that time, a local buyer, John Baldwin of Passage East, purchased their catches. This single transaction proved to be the catalyst for a renewed and bitter dispute, one that would later involve confrontations at sea, arrests, imprisonments, and numerous court cases.

News that Northern boats had landed herring at Passage East spread quickly. Many southern skippers feared that this development would open the door to a resumption of Northern landings at southern ports. Such a return, they believed, would recreate the conditions of the late 1950s and early 1960s, when southern boats often struggled to dispose of their catches.

A deputation from SECFA, led by Chairman Laurence Lett, travelled to Passage East to meet the Northern skippers. They warned them in clear terms that they should cease fishing off Dunmore East and refrain from landing further herring in southern ports. At the same time, buyers at Dunmore East were, according to contemporary reports, asked not to purchase herring from Northern boats. It was made clear that failure to comply would result in exclusion from SECFA auctions.

For many buyers, this posed a serious dilemma. By that stage of the season, most had contractual commitments to continental customers, and the prospect of being denied access to herring from SECFA boats—who accounted for approximately ninety per cent of the southern fleet—was untenable. As a result, the majority agreed to SECFA’s demands.

Two buyers, however, refused. John Baldwin of Passage East and Nicky Kervick of Waterford indicated that they would continue to buy herring from any vessel legally entitled to land in southern ports.

Activity over the Christmas period remained limited. The Northern fleet stayed berthed at Passage East and in Waterford, where Garda protection was provided, and the fishery entered a tense and uncertain phase.

The Battle of Baginbun

When the fishery resumed after Christmas 1965, tension in the south-east ports was unmistakable and as the dispute intensified, the national press began to take notice. On Friday, 31 December 1965, the Cork Examiner carried a front-page headline warning fishermen that the situation was being closely monitored. The Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, Charles Haughey, stated that a public inquiry would be held at the end of the herring season to examine what he described as the “whole position”. He made it clear that any breach of the peace would be dealt with according to law, and confirmed that Gardaí were investigating an allegation involving the Northern vessel Castle Hill while fishing in the Baginbun area.

By the opening days of January, it was evident that tensions had reached a critical point.

At that time, it was an accepted practice among Dunmore East fishermen that no fishing took place on Sundays. The custom was not rooted in religious observance but in practical conservation, allowing the shoals a measure of respite. On the morning of Sunday, the 2nd of January 1966, many fishermen attended Mass at Killea Church, which overlooks Dunmore East and Waterford Harbour. From the church grounds, they could see clearly across the water to Baginbun Bay, on the far side of the Hook Peninsula.

There, in full view, Northern boats were fishing.

Skipper Michael Orpen later recalled the moment with stark clarity. Standing outside the church after Mass, the sight of the Northern vessels working the shoals stirred deep frustration. There was little point, he remembered, in Southern boats going to sea at that time. Fish could not be sold, buyers were scarce, and the imbalance felt unbearable. The Northern skippers, he believed, were well aware of the Southern fishermen’s predicament but continued regardless.

By the following morning, a small group of boats set course for Baginbun. Among them were the Ardent, the Orion, and several vessels from Wexford and Dunmore East. Their stated intention was to confront the Northern boats and prevent further fishing. As they closed in, heated exchanges took place over the radio, tempers rising as positions hardened.

During the confrontation, there was contact between the Ardent and the Northern vessel Victory, a seventy-foot boat built at Skinner’s Yard in Baltimore in the 1940s. Orpen later explained that the scarf on the bow of the Victory was pulled around when it came into contact with the band on the port side of his own vessel. What followed was quickly reported to the authorities.

When the Southern boats returned to Dunmore East later that day, Gardaí were waiting on the pier. The press had already arrived. One newspaper gave the confrontation its enduring name: The Battle of Baginbun. Orpen was identified as a central figure in the incident and accused of ramming the Victory.

The Irish Independant ran the following story on January 4th 1966:

SEA BATTLE BETWEEN TRAWLERS

THE south-east coast “fish war” erupted violently early yesterday when Northern and southern trawlers clashed in a battle.

During the three-hour battle at sea, the corvette Macha fired a warning shot over the bows of the southern boats which had surrounded the Northern trawlers.

At one stage, as the Northern trawlermen were trying to radio the Macha for help, they claimed that their radio contact was jammed by the south-east coast fishermen who were singing “patriotic songs”.

The Kilkeel trawler, the Victory, was the first of the Northern boats to return to Passage East after the battle.

Her skipper, Mr. William McKee, said that they had left Passage East shortly before dawn with other Northern boats and shot their nets off the south Wexford coast.

“There were two boats on each of our bows and two on our stern. One of the boats threw an anchor into our nets and tore them. We had to heave up our nets to get them aboard and after about 10 minutes, as soon as we started to move away, two Southern boats came up alongside us.”

Mr. McKee said that crews of southern boats threw bottles, lead and coal at the Northern trawlers and one of his crew members had his face cut with a bottle.

HIT WITH BOTTLE

Mr. Henry Galbrith (42), of Kilkeel, the injured crew member of the Victory said: “I saw the southern boats converge on us and I was hit on the face with a bottle thrown from one of them. We were about three miles out at the time.”

Two other Northern trawlers, the Westward and the Western, later docked at Passage East with their nets torn.

A crew member of one said they got a good “smacking” of booming and shot their nets but one of the southern boats steamed through the nets and tore them. They were escorted by the corvette from the fishing grounds to Creadon Head.

“AWFUL SITUATION”

Mr. A. D. Hartman, a Dutch buyer who was buying herring from Mr. John Baldwin, fish merchant at Passage East, said:
“I came over here to develop the fishing business and did not expect to walk into a war. It is an awful situation. We were doing our best to provide work for the people here and secure herring of which there is a scarcity and for which there is a good price paid. All this has now been made impossible.

“I had arranged during the weekend to send a new GNO boat here with barrels but now that has to stop for the time being. We did everything possible to encourage the fishing business in Co. Waterford which is growing every year, and now it all seems to be stopped.”

Mr. Terry McSweeney, coxswain of the Macha, said that the corvette fired a shot. It was a blank, and it was a practice shot. It had a double purpose of dispersing the fishing boats which were milling around each other, he added.

The southern fleet docked at Dunmore East yesterday evening but had no fish.

Two of the herring buyers in Dunmore East said yesterday that they had decided not to bid for any more fish there until there was peace and order.

Mr. Roger Shipsey, who buys for Dutch firms and who last week bought over 5,000 cran of herring, said: “I am not bidding until the Government steps in and there is peace and order in the port. I am not for the north or south. I am only for peace and quiet and it is up to the Government to see that we have peace and order.”

Mr. Shipsey added: “Mr. Lett, the chairman of the South-East Coast Fishermen’s Association, came to me today and said that if fish were landed and I did not bid for them, my bid would be refused in future. I regard this as a threat. He told me he would make alternative arrangements to sell the fish and that he would have alternative French or Dutch buyers in here.”

Mr. Patrick O’Toole, a buyer for the fresh herring market, also said he was not going to bid until such time as there was law and order in the port.

Dutch and German buyers left Dunmore East and Passage East following yesterday’s incidents, and it was stated that they intended to stay clear of the area until the present trouble ended.

The Northern trawler Green Hill, which had been operating from Passage East, Co. Waterford, withdrew from the south Wexford coast herring fishing grounds yesterday evening following the incidents.

The vessel put into Rosslare Harbour to land one of her crew who is a native of Waterford. After the Green Hill filled her freshwater tanks at Rosslare Harbour she left for Kilkeel.

Three other Northern trawlers which had also withdrawn from the herring grounds also left for Kilkeel.

Following a meeting of the skippers and crews of all the Southern boats in Dunmore East last night it was decided, a spokesman said, that following the incidents on the fishing grounds yesterday after which one of their members was taken into custody the men would give financial aid to the man while he was detained.

From that point on, the dispute moved decisively from sea to shore, and from protest to prosecution.

Court Cases and Further Proceedings

Over the following weeks, multiple summonses were issued to fishermen and to officers of SECFA. Proceedings were initiated at Waterford District Court on a wide range of charges, including unlawfully and maliciously damaging a Northern Ireland trawler, intimidation and obstruction of Northern vessels, and intimidation of buyers to prevent them purchasing fish.

One newspaper reported that more than eighty summonses were issued, though most of the charges were later dismissed due to lack of evidence. One case, however, proceeded further. Michael Orpen of Castletownbere, skipper of the Ardent, was charged with unlawfully and maliciously causing damage to the Victory. Bail was refused, and Orpen was committed to Limerick Prison, where he was held for a short period before being released on bail.

The case against Orpen, together with similar charges against two other skippers, was adjourned to Waterford District Court on 22 February 1966 and later transferred to the Central Criminal Court in Dublin. Separate charges of conspiracy were also brought against officers of SECFA and other individuals, alleging actions against two fish merchants, John Baldwin and Nicholas Kervick of Waterford. These cases were likewise deferred to the Central Criminal Court.

Tension in the South-East Ports

In the days following the incidents at sea, tension in Dunmore East and Passage East remained high. Rumours circulated that firearms were being carried aboard certain vessels, and SECFA suspended all fishing for a brief period. A delegation representing most of the southern fleet travelled to Dublin, demanding that the Government prohibit Northern boats from fishing within Irish jurisdiction and prevent them from landing herring at Irish ports.

Northern skippers rejected these demands, insisting that they were legally entitled to fish within Irish waters. They pointed to assurances given by the Irish Government as far back as 1959. The Irish Times, in a report published on 6 January 1966 under the heading The Fishery Law, stated:

The right of the Northern Ireland fishermen to operate in Irish territorial waters was defined by the Minister for Lands in December, 1959. His statement announced that boats not exceeding 75 feet in length, owned and operated by fishermen permanently resident in Northern Ireland, would not be prevented from fishing within our fishery limits.

This position was reiterated in a Government Information Bureau statement issued in February 1962.

As the crisis deepened, Charles Haughey TD, then Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, became directly involved. He issued a statement indicating that all necessary steps would be taken to ensure the safety of Northern Irish vessels fishing in Irish waters. The Belfast Telegraph reported that Mr Haughey had contacted the Parliamentary Secretary to the Northern Ireland Minister of Agriculture, Captain Long, expressing regret over the incidents and reaffirming that Northern trawlers and crews would be protected while in Irish ports and waters.

Politically, the affair proved extremely sensitive. Once again, the Dunmore East herring fishery became an obstacle to improving cross-border relations, and the events caused considerable embarrassment for the Irish Government.

At the same time, the herring buyers’ association at Dunmore East—largely inactive since its formation in 1963—was hastily reconstituted. It announced that none of its members would buy herring from any vessel, northern or southern, until the situation was resolved and calm restored. SECFA responded by stating that, in the absence of buyers and in the interests of its members, it had no option but to bring in its own luggers to provide an outlet for catches.

For a short but deeply unpleasant period, Dunmore East existed under a cloud of tension. Boats lay tied up at night, pubs echoed with rebel songs and talk of 1798, and a song celebrating ‘Brave Mick Orpen of Beara’ was sung with enthusiasm. Garda reinforcements were deployed in both Dunmore East and Passage East, with large numbers billeted in local hotels and patrolling the harbours by day and night.

Mediation Attempts

In time, efforts were made to bring the dispute to an end. What The Irish Skipper described as an ‘historic meeting’ took place at Powers Hotel in Dublin on 14 January 1966, when representatives of the Irish Fishermen’s Association met with their counterparts from the Ulster Sea Fishermen’s Association. The Irish delegation was led by its Chairman, Denis O’Driscoll of Castletownbere, while the Ulster Association was represented by its Chairman, S. J. McKnight. The meeting was chaired by Arthur Reynolds, editor of The Irish Skipper.

After five hours of discussion, it was announced that agreement had been reached on an interim basis and that further meetings would follow in the months ahead. A joint statement was issued:

In the interests of peace and understanding in the Irish fishing industry as a whole, the Ulster Sea Fishermen’s Association is willing to keep out of Irish Republican waters for nine months from today’s date from the Tuskar to Inishtrahull, west about, to allow the Irish Fishermen’s Association to negotiate a permanent solution to the present difficulties. This is subject to the four Northern Ireland boats at Passage East being permitted to finish the season on these fishing grounds. The Ulster Sea Fishermen’s Association wishes to express its willingness to continue negotiations with the Irish Fishermen’s Association over the next few months to establish a final and amicable solution to our mutual problems. The Irish Fishermen’s Association welcomes this statement and assures the Ulster Fishermen’s Association that it considers this decision a concrete step towards the development of a successful Irish fishing industry.

Following the meeting, most of the Northern vessels departed the fishery and returned home. A small number of skippers, however, chose to remain for a short period and continued fishing alongside the southern fleet under the protection of the naval corvettes LÉ Macha and LÉ Clíona. Over the next few days, approximately seventy-five tonnes of herring were landed at Passage East under Garda protection, with the catches purchased by John Baldwin and Nicholas Kervick.

As had been the case during earlier disputes, the actions of SECFA did not command universal support. Fishermen’s organisations in Howth, Skerries, Loughshinny, and Clogherhead publicly distanced themselves from the position adopted by their southern colleagues. The organisation at Clogherhead went further, stating that Northern skippers were welcome to land their catches in their port.

Despite the agreement reached in Dublin, the remaining Northern skippers were uneasy about continuing in the fishery. By mid-January, they too had withdrawn. The final vessel to leave was the Harvest Morn, skippered by Tom Maginess of Kilkeel.

While the great majority of southern skippers supported the exclusion of Northern boats, some sympathised with their Northern counterparts and were reluctant to sell their catches through SECFA. This placed an obligation on the State to provide an alternative mechanism for the sale of fish—one that would accommodate such skippers and any Northern vessels that might lawfully return to land at Dunmore East.

State Auctioneer and Port Officer

The appointment of a State auctioneer and port officer had been promised as far back as 1963 but had never been implemented. In the aftermath of the recent crisis, however, the Department moved quickly. Gerry Maguire was appointed as State auctioneer, and Paddy Fannon was installed as port officer.

The role of the port officer was to ensure that order was maintained within the harbour. Although not a law enforcement officer, he was described as an ‘official presence’, with responsibilities that included supervising auctions, collecting catch statistics on behalf of the Department, and arbitrating in the event of disputes over sales. Both men were seconded by Bord Iascaigh Mhara to the Fisheries Division of the Department of Agriculture for the duration of the herring season, an arrangement that continued until the late 1970s.

In the period following the confrontation at sea, most southern vessels continued to sell their catches through SECFA. A small number—primarily boats owned by Dublin companies—availed of the services of the State auctioneer. Alan Glanville, skipper of the Carina, who had acted briefly as a spokesman for fishermen in the aftermath of the Battle of Baginbun, continued to sell his own catches independently, as he had done for many years.

Conspiracy Charges in the High Court, Dublin

In the aftermath of the dispute, the buyers John Baldwin and Nicholas Kervick maintained that they had been unjustly excluded from purchasing herring. Barred from auctions conducted by SECFA, they sought redress through the civil courts, claiming damages for loss of earnings arising from wrongful and malicious conspiracy, wrongful and malicious intimidation, and breach of contract.

The case came before Mr Justice Kenny in the High Court in Dublin in June and July 1966. It lasted three weeks and, like the confrontations at sea, attracted sustained media attention. At the outset, Justice Kenny observed that it was “a case of considerable complications” and one in which the jury would be required to address difficult and technical points of law.

At its core, the case concerned whether members of SECFA had conspired with others to prevent Baldwin and Kervick from purchasing herring at public auction. It also revisited the wider question of whether Northern Ireland vessels were entitled to fish within Irish territorial waters. On this latter point, Justice Kenny expressed no doubt: Northern fishermen did possess such an entitlement, and he considered that one of the principal objectives of the defendants had been to prevent them from exercising it. He further indicated that this aspect of the case was more appropriately dealt with by a judge alone rather than by judge and jury.

A small but significant portion of the evidence related to the state of the herring stock off Dunmore East and concerns about overfishing. Dr John Bracken of University College Dublin, who had carried out scientific investigations on the stock for the Department between 1958 and 1963, was called to give evidence on behalf of the buyers. He outlined the biology and population dynamics of the herring. I was called on behalf of the fishermen and was asked a single, direct question about the likely consequences of a recruitment failure. I replied that repeated recruitment failures would lead to the collapse of the stock.

When the evidence had concluded, Justice Kenny submitted a detailed list of twenty-four questions to the jury. These were designed to establish whether a conspiracy had existed to prevent Northern fishermen from trading with Baldwin and Kervick, and, if so, who had participated in it.

The jury found that a conspiracy had indeed existed and that the defendants were parties to it. Crucially, however, it also found that the predominant motive of the defendants had been to advance and protect their own interests. Similar conclusions were reached in response to many of the other questions. The jury further determined that Northern boats had been intimidated to discourage them from landing fish at or near Dunmore East, but that this intimidation had not occurred in furtherance of a conspiracy.

Damages were assessed, but none were awarded. This outcome gave rise to further proceedings after sections of the media reported that the court had found in favour of the merchants and that damages had been imposed on the defendants. The defendants initiated actions against two national newspapers, arguing that the reports conveyed an incorrect impression that the merchants had been vindicated. Both newspapers apologised in court, and modest damages were awarded to the defendants.

One practical consequence of the case was a change in auction procedure at Dunmore East. For a number of years thereafter, auctioneers were required to state, before bidding commenced, that they were not obliged to accept any bid and could refuse to sell fish to any buyer at their discretion. In time, this preamble quietly disappeared.

Nicholas Kervick never returned to buying herring on the pier at Dunmore East. John Baldwin did make one unsuccessful attempt some years later but went on to become a significant and successful herring buyer in the Isle of Man and Scotland. He later recorded his experiences of the Dunmore East herring dispute in his book For to Hunt the Shoals of Herring (Baldwin, 1998).

Toy Boats in the Central Criminal Court

Michael Orpen would later reflect on those weeks with a clarity shaped by time rather than bitterness. He had been fishing the Ardent, a timber-built vessel constructed in Scotland and little more than four years old. Five men were arrested in the aftermath of the confrontation—Brian Crummey, Michael Doran, William McCarthy, Mark Bates, and Orpen himself—but it was Orpen alone who was sent to prison.

For a time, he found himself handcuffed. When he was eventually released on bail, he was free to return to sea, but the demands of the courts meant that for seven weeks during late 1966 he could not fish. Those were weeks spent not on the grounds but in courtrooms, waiting while events far removed from the tide and weather ran their course.

He spoke with respect of Laurence Lett, uncle of Michael Doran, whose role in the formation of SECFA he regarded as decisive, and of Seán Collins TD, who, he felt, understood and represented the fishermen’s position at a critical time.

There was a deep unease about the court proceedings. No master mariners were called to give evidence, and Orpen was advised by senior counsel that the odds were against him. When the case reached the Central Criminal Court in Dublin, he stayed at the Ormond Hotel on the quays, sharing the building with farmers involved in a separate dispute, all waiting on the slow machinery of justice.

On the final day of the hearing, after seven weeks of evidence, Orpen was due in court at eleven o’clock. Walking up Henry Street that morning, he noticed a Woolworth’s window displaying model boats and toy ships. He went inside and bought several of them.

As reported in The Irish Times, witnesses had described how the Victory had hauled its gear, moved off, and struck the Ardent on the port side. Orpen, having discussed the matter with his counsel, asked Mr Justice Kenny for permission to demonstrate what he believed had happened. The judge agreed.

Taking a table in the courtroom, Orpen produced two small model boats from a paper bag and used them to illustrate the encounter. He explained the basic principle as he understood it—that vessels approaching one another must pass port to port, no different in essence, he said, from cars meeting at a junction where one must yield. It was a simple explanation, rooted in seamanship rather than law.

That demonstration, he later believed, changed the course of the case. The verdict was not guilty.

Orpen returned to fishing, but his legal troubles were not yet over. A separate conspiracy case brought by Northern boat owners saw him again before the courts. For a second time, he was found not guilty.

He often recalled his father’s advice. If ever you find yourself in court, he had been told, tell the truth. Lies unravel quickly, but the truth, however inconvenient, has its own strength.

The herring dispute, Orpen remembered, was reported around the world. International newspapers carried the story, some portraying those involved as “mad Irishmen”. He rejected the caricature.

They were not agitators, he insisted, but fishermen trying to survive a winter that had already been a hard one. He held no grievance against the Northern boats. If there was blame to be placed, he believed, it lay elsewhere—with buyers and pressures far removed from the deck of a boat at sea.

In the days that followed, the courts continued their work. Brian Crummey, skipper of the Ard Ailbhe, was charged with attempting to cause malicious damage exceeding £50 to a fishing net belonging to the Castle Hill, skippered by Gordon Heaney. Mark Bates, skipper of the Boolavogue, faced a separate charge of attempting to destroy or render useless the trawler Westbury, under the command of Ian Campbell. Both cases were heard, and in each instance the charges were dismissed and the men acquitted.

Another prosecution followed, this time aimed not at the boats or the skippers but at the shore. What the newspapers referred to as the four “Dunmore East fish merchants”—Michael Doran, Laurence Lett, Jack McGrath, and Alan Glanville—were charged with conspiracy to prevent other merchants from purchasing herring from Northern boats. Like the earlier cases, this charge failed, and it too was dismissed by the court.

By the time the legal proceedings finally ran their course, the conflict itself had largely spent its force. What remained were memories carried by those who had been drawn into it, bundles of newspaper cuttings carefully kept, and a quiet understanding within the fishing community that the fishery had passed through a moment from which it would never entirely recover. The boats returned to sea, the harbour resumed its routines, but something of the old certainty had been lost, carried away on the tide with the herring themselves. 

The End of the Troubles

The approach of the 1966–67 season was marked by a degree of unease. The statement issued after the joint meeting of the Irish Fishermen’s Association and the Ulster Sea Fishermen’s Association in January 1966 had indicated that Northern boats would remain outside what were described as “Irish Republican waters” for a period of nine months, during which time both organisations would attempt to negotiate a permanent settlement. In practice, little contact took place, and no lasting solution emerged.

Shortly before the season was due to begin in November 1966, the Ulster Sea Fishermen’s Association reaffirmed its belief that Northern boats were legally entitled to fish within Irish limits. It stated that it had informed its members that they could, if they wished, resume fishing in southern Irish waters “with the full support and approval of their organisation and of the Government of the Irish Republic”. Two vessels, the Spes Melior, skippered by Robert McCullough, and the Green Pastures II, skippered by Victor Chambers, arrived in Waterford and declared their intention to fish and land their catches at Milford Haven. John Baldwin indicated that he would purchase their fish should they land at Passage East.

In the event, no further incidents occurred. The season passed quietly, and the Northern vessels did not return to the fishery thereafter. With little ceremony, the long-running dispute came to an end.

Expansion of the Fishery in the Late 1960s

In the years following the conflict, SECFA, working closely with the local port committee and Department officials, continued to manage the fishery in accordance with established port rules. In 1966, Michael McSweeney of Baltimore, then a buyer of fresh herring for the UK market, was appointed full-time manager of SECFA following the retirement of Laurence Lett. McSweeney would hold the position for the next forty years.

One of the distinguishing features of the SECFA system was the careful compilation of landing and price statistics. These records were made readily available to fisheries officers and scientists, and relations between the organisation and Department officials were consistently constructive.

After the difficult 1965–66 season, the fishery entered a period of rapid expansion. Boats were once again drawn to the Celtic Sea from ports around the coast, and prosperity returned to many skippers, crews, buyers, and the communities that depended on them. The Dutch processing industry remained eager to secure supplies of herring and, in addition to purchasing large quantities ashore, continued to fish off the south coast, both inside and outside the limits.

In January 1966, one of the larger Dutch trawlers, Rijnmond II, was arrested and detained at Cobh after entering and fishing within Irish territorial waters. The skipper, Cornelius Zwaan, was fined £25, and his gear and catch were confiscated.

The 1966–67 season saw a modest recovery, with approximately fifty vessels landing just over 8,200 tonnes of herring. That year was notable for the wide distribution of the shoals, with catches recorded as far west as Youghal. Landings increased again in 1967–68, reaching more than 10,800 tonnes. Continental demand, however, weakened, and marketing conditions deteriorated. On several occasions, the port committee suspended fishing to prevent further pressure on already fragile markets.

As ever, the Irish industry remained heavily dependent on European demand for whole herring. With little domestic processing capacity, even minor fluctuations in continental markets were quickly reflected in reduced demand and falling prices at home.

The Cú Feasa and Cú na Mara Go Commercial

The 1967–68 season was not without controversy. The research vessel Cú Feasa, long involved in assisting the fleet to locate shoals, was joined by a second research ship, Cú na Mara. Although both vessels were tasked primarily with research and support, they began fishing commercially in an effort to offset operating costs.

To the surprise of many fishermen, the two vessels succeeded in catching and landing herring. This development caused considerable unease. Not only did it worsen an already difficult marketing situation, but the catches were sold through the State auctioneer and purchased by John Baldwin, who had previously been excluded from buying herring under SECFA arrangements.

Among SECFA members, the episode was viewed with suspicion. It was widely believed that the Department was using State vessels to provide Baldwin with a means of re-establishing himself as a legitimate buyer on the Dunmore East pier. A Parliamentary Question was raised in the Dáil, asking why research vessels were engaged in commercial fishing and pointing out that such activity constituted unfair competition with the local fleet.

After landing approximately sixty-five tonnes of herring, valued at about £3,000, the two vessels withdrew from the fishery and resumed their research duties. The episode was brief and puzzling, and no clear explanation was ever offered.

By then, the great disputes of the herring years were largely over. What remained was a fishery still capable of prosperity, yet increasingly vulnerable—to markets beyond its control, to the limits of the stock itself, and to the passage of time.

Closing Reflections

Looking back now, it is clear that the herring years at Dunmore East were about far more than fish. They were years when the harbour stood at the centre of forces much larger than itself—international markets, political uncertainty, changing technology, and the enduring instincts of fishermen shaped by generations at sea. For a brief period, the village became a focal point where prosperity and conflict arrived together on the incoming tide.

The disputes, court cases, and confrontations that marked the 1960s are easy to recall, but they tell only part of the story. Beneath them lay a deeper truth: a fishery struggling to adapt to abundance after scarcity, to regulation after freedom, and to a world that was changing faster than the traditions that had sustained it. Fishermen acted, as they always had, to protect their livelihoods and their families, often with imperfect information and under intense pressure. Buyers, officials, and politicians were drawn into the same currents, each navigating competing responsibilities.

In time, the shoals moved on, markets shifted, and the great herring fishery of the south-east faded. What remains are memories of crowded harbours, winter nights on the grounds, arguments on the pier, and moments of shared hardship and rare prosperity. The old saying that you could walk across Dunmore harbour on herring boats belongs now to another age, spoken with a mixture of pride and disbelief.

Yet the legacy endures. The systems put in place, the lessons learned about co-operation and restraint, and the stories carried by those who were there all form part of the fabric of the place. Dunmore East has always lived by the sea, adapting as it must, and the herring years—turbulent, prosperous, and divisive—remain one of the most defining chapters in that long relationship.

The boats are quieter now, the disputes settled by time rather than courts, but when the wind is right and the tide turns, there are still those who remember when the sea was thick with herring and the harbour lights burned long into the winter night.

Sources for this article:

The Herring Fisheries of Ireland by John Molloy

1966 Herring Battle of Baginbun by Lorna Siggins

The Irish Independant