Courtesy of Liam McVeigh
Portaferry Galway Hookers Festival
The Galway or Connemara hooker, with its distinctive curved lines, supported a significant fishing industry in Galway Bay and around the Connemara coast in the 19th century and carried goods, livestock and fuel at a time when the sea was the main means of transport and communication for the coastal communities. Since the mid seventies, many of the old sailing craft which were on the verge of extinction have been lovingly restored and new ones have been built. During the summer months they can be seen at a series of regattas held around the coast but particularly in the west of Ireland where they originated.
The hooker, a name associated with hook and line fishing, refers to four classes of boats. The Bád Mór (big boat) ranges in length from 35 to 44 feet (10.5 - 13.5metres) .The standard rigging consisted of three brown calico (now Terylene) sails, a main sail, foresail and a jib extended beyond the bow on a bowsprit. The Leath Bhád (half boat) is about 32 feet (10 metres) in length.
Two other classes of sailing craft were also widespread in the region. The Gleoiteog ranges in size from 24 to 28 feet (7 -8.5 metres) and has the same lines and rig as the hookers. She was used for fishing or carrying cargo. The Púcán is similar in size and shape to the Gleoiteog, but carries a different rig, with a large dipping lug and a small jib.
Larch, oak and beech were used in the building of these sturdy craft. The timbers were usually tarred with a mixture of creosote and coal. The hull was decked from the stem to the mast beam and a small cabin or cuddy provided cooking and sleeping quarters. Cooking was on an open turf fire on a stone hearth. The ballast of local stones was carefully and expertly located amidships.
Richard J. Scott in his excellent book The Galway Hookers, now in its third edition, gives a detailed description of the construction and rigging of these working sailboats used in Galway Bay, the Aran islands and the Connemara coast.
"The hull's sharp clean entrance, deceptively under the apple-cheeked buoyant , forequarter, considerable tumble-home or belly of up to 12 inches each side, a beautiful run starting almost amidships, and sweeping up to the raked transom, all were distinctive features of the hooker. There was hardly a flat plank in her."
The origins of the Galway hooker are not clear but links with the Netherlands or with Norway have been suggested by Richard Scott. James Hardiman in his History of Galway, published in 1820, notes an increase in the size of the boats used by the the Claddagh fishermen from about 1790 onwards and the 1836 Sea Fisheries Inquiry Report also comments that the hookers had increased significantly in size from 4-6 ton to 8-14 tons at that time. Scott therefore concludes that " it is not unreasonable for Galwaymen to lay claim to the hooker as their own, a very special craft tailor-made for their water, and to their needs....That the Galway model was unique more than 100 years ago is unquestioned. ".