This is the first of backstories re photos in my galleries that I’ll be writing on occasion and posting to this blog. If a photo has a backstory you will see a “Backstory” link below it.

Youghal is one half medieval walled town and one half Victorian beach resort. It is the place where Walter Raleigh first introduced the potato into Ireland, where Cromwell left the country from and where much of Ireland’s medieval trade was done through.

No photoshop used here. I had just walked back to my car with a coffee and sausage roll from one of my favorite shops in this town, and was planning on enjoying both at the nearby harbor, but then in typical Irish fashion it started to drizzle a bit. So I sat in my car having my coffee, watching the water collect on the windshield and decided to take a picture. The result was an unintended impressionist effect, and I think it reflects the mood of that cold early January day.

The tower is essentially the center of town. According to a recent article by the Irish Times:

“The Clock Gate stands on the site of the former Trinity Castle, one of five gateways into Youghal. The actual clock was installed in 1620 to broadcast the death of children and was retained when the tower was built in the 1770s. It also served as a prison until 1837. A few floggings and executions were associated with the tower, particularly after the 1798 rebellion.”