Ballycorus Leadmines
The ruin of the flue chimney at Ballycorus
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| Location | |
|---|---|
| Location | Ballycorus |
| County | Dublin |
| Country | Ireland |
| Coordinates | 53°13′28″N 006°09′50″W / 53.22444°N 6.16389°WCoordinates: 53°13′28″N 006°09′50″W / 53.22444°N 6.16389°W |
| Production | |
| Products |
Lead Silver |
| History | |
| Opened | 1807 |
| Closed | 1913 |
| Owner | |
| Company | Mining Company of Ireland |
| Website | http://www.metalprocessors.ie |
Ballycorus (Irish: Baile Mhic Fheorais, meaning "Town of the Pearse Family")leadmines is a former lead mining and smelting centre located in the townland of the same name, near Kilternan in County Dublin, Ireland. The mine opened around 1807 and was taken over by the Mining Company of Ireland (MCI) in 1826 who owned and operated the site up until closure in 1913. After the mine was exhausted in the 1860s, Ballycorus continued to operate as a smelting facility receiving ore from other MCI sites such as the mines in Glendalough, County Wicklow. The most distinctive surviving remnant of the site is the ruin of the flue chimney that lies close to the summit of Carrickgollogan hill. Further down the slopes of the hill, many other former buildings and structures from the leadworks can also be found.
Open-cast mining began at Ballycorus around 1807 on the western side of Carrickgollogan hill, close to the later site of the flue chimney. The site was taken over by the Mining Company of Ireland (MCI) in 1826 who undertook underground mining in the area up until 1863. This activity was carried out on an intermittent basis on account of the discontinuous nature of the vein and depending on lead prices. A vein of silver was discovered in 1843 but production was limited.
Most of the activity at Ballycorus occurred at the smelting and rolling facility constructed by MCI in the valley below the mine workings. This facility received ore not only from Ballycorus but also from MCI's mine at Luganure, in Glendalough, County Wicklow for processing. The ore from Luganure was carried by horse and cart to the railway station at Rathdrum where it was transferred to a train and brought to Shankill. A siding on the Harcourt Street railway line was built near Shankill station to receive the trains. From Shankill the ore was carted to Ballycorus. Lead ore was also received from MCI mines in counties Donegal and Wexford. By the 1880s it was no longer commercially viable to process Irish ores and the smelter was put to work processing ore from the Great Laxey mine in the Isle of Man up until closure in 1913.
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