Over this bank holiday weekend, I was over in Waterville, County Kerry to run an ultramarathon. It didn’t go to plan unfortunately, but while I was there I discovered Waterville has some seriously impressive connections, both with radio and with Hollywood.
I only copped it yesterday evening that Waterville was home to the Commercial Cable Company’s Trans-Atlantic European terminus from the 1880’s up until the 1960’s! I noticed a sign on the beach that pointed towards a commemorative plaque that marks the spot where the cable was laid all those years ago to America.
Waterville was not only connected to the USA, but also to the UK, The Azores, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Le Havre. All of those cables terminated in one place, Waterville, County Kerry, Ireland. Incredible!
There is a museum which showcases all of the old keys and telegraph equipment but it was closed so unfortunately I had to miss out on that. I did follow the Heratige Trail dedicated to the Waterville Cable Station, so here’s a few snaps I thought to share of that trail which might be of interest to fellow radio nerds! (Note: There was an additional plaque at the opposite side of the entrance to the Cable Station, but I couldn’t find it and was running out of time before I had to hit the road).
First up on the trail was the plaque on the promenade which commemorates the landing point of the Commercial Cable Company’s first transatlantic cables. From this point, the cables were then fed underground to the cable station.
You’ll notice as well, the trail is marked out by special cutaway stumps of undersea cables. Each has a QR code and some descriptions and photos on the top.
Next is a plaque outside the entrance to the Cable Station. This is a good bit up the road from Waterville, so if you don’t fancy the short walk, take a car up to the B&B car park in the vicinity.
Walking around the loop section of the area, you then come across the Logitude and Latitude stone. It’s a bit faded now as it’s been there since the 1890’s. It was erected by the Commercial Cable Company to mark the Waterville station’s participation in the 1892 international project with Greenwich Observatory and McGill University to determine the longitude of Montreal, Canada.
Just a few paces up from the stone is the old Cable Station Superintendent’s House. This was built in 1858 originally as a shooting lodge. Office buildings were completed in 1899 and it remained the Superintendent’s home until the company sold it in 1964.
Up until about 20 years ago it was the home of the local doctor. It may be privately sold off soon, or may be up for sale. I found this out by talking to a gentleman who was out walking his dogs while I was there.
Just as you complete the trail loop you will find the former Commercial Cable Company offices, with a water tower (now a private residence) adjacent. Notice the looming modern comms tower in the background that delivers a bit of impact in to how much things have changed!
Shout out to that 1994 Merc parked outside too. Whopper!
Lastly, you may not know this, but Waterville had a famous resident for about 10 years. Some bloke called Charlie Chaplin. You may have heard of him. He made some popular films apparently… 
There is a statue of Charlie Chaplin, and a memorial stone next to it on the promenade.
As a bonus snap. I did some 40m and 20m QRP on the promenade. Here’s a photo of my setup. I finished up later in the evening so took a photo of the sunset and the sign posts marking the directions to the cable plaque, which is where I first found out about Waterville being steeped in communications history.
Maybe you might visit Waterville or Ireland some day? 73 DE EI3LH. 