The Paddy The Cope Trail has been developed to keep the memory of Paddy The Cope alive and to transfere the story of this very important figure in local history to the children of the area.
So, who was Paddy the Cope?
Paddy The Cope Gallagher (Pádraig Ó Gallchóir; 1873-1966) was the founder of The Cope (officially called the Templecrone Agricultural Co-operative Society). A businessman and campaigner for West Donegal, he was born in Cleendra, Templecrone, part of The Rosses, in the west of County Donegal, Ireland.
At an early age he began work as a hired boy working as a farm labourer first in County Donegal and then as a potato picker (or potato gatherer) in Scotland. It was this hard work, with its long hours and poor pay, he was later to say, that inspired him to found a co-operative movement back home in County Donegal. His co-op was opposed by local vested interests and he had to buy his own boats to do his importing. He also helped to co-ordinate the local fishing and textile co-operatives, allowing such workers to swap their produce for goods in his local co-operative shops. He wrote an autobiography, published in 1939, called Patrick Gallagher: My Story.
Gallagher was the grandfather of the politician Pat The Cope Gallagher. An image of Gallagher was featured on an Irish postage stamp issued in 2006.
At various points throughout the trail there are caches hidden to keep the learning experience fun.
This cache is hidden at a point which gives you a glimpse of The Mill Race.
For a better view, move outside the stone wall - PLEASE TAKE GREAT CARE AS TRAFFIC PASSES QUICKLY HERE, Take a look over the wall and you will see what looks very much like an open drain. This is in fact what remains of The Mill Race – the mill race is a man-made channel which brought water from the Dungloe River to the corn mill by the pier.
It ran for about half a mile, from where the Dungloe River Walk starts on the Gweedore Road, by the Bayview car park and under the road in front of the Garda Station.
Sluice gates, which were located on the River, were raised and lowered according to how much water was needed and this controlled the flow. The gates were shut late at night to allow a millpond (like a ‘bank’ of water stored) to build up. No electricity could be generated and no grain could be milled until the next morning when the sluice gates were opened again.
This Cache:
Take care with the children when looking for this cache. It is located at the edge of the little garden (on the town side) just off the main road (After the stone wall). Stay on the side of the road closest to the sea so there's no crossing over necessary. Please note: There are two waypoints close to here worth visiting. You will be rewarded well if you take a rest at the pier and again as you step on to the bridge and look left just after the playground. have fun and good luck !!