Footprints in Coal Experience Exhibition

The Footprints in Coal Experience is a 45 minute tour through Castlecomer’s past, an interactive multimedia display that takes the visitor on a journey through time. Starting with the formation of the coal 300 million years ago, it than skips forward and travels through more than 300 years of coal mining history to the closure of the mines in 1969. First through the use of life-sized reconstructions of prehistoric animals and plants, video clips, fossils, rock specimens and information panels, prehistoric life in the coal swamps of the Carboniferous Period is brought to life. Then life sized and scale models of the mines, displays of mining artefact's, information panels and video interviews with ex-miners and the families of those associated with the mines bring to life more than 300 years of coal mining history.

A visit to the Footprints in Coal Experience involves a self-guided tour through eight individual rooms each with its own theme.

Room 1. 1864 Mine scene

An introduction to the Footprints in Coal Experience; this room sets the scene for the two separate but interlinked stories of the Castlecomer Coal.

Take a trip back in time to 1864 and see inside a coalmine from the Jarrow Seam. See how the miners brought the coal out of the mines.

Room 2. Scientific Background

This room explains the historical context in which the Jarrow Fossils were found. It introduces some of the scientists of the time and the work that they were involved in. The fossils themselves are examined in more detail.

Room 3. Ancient Environments and Rock Formation

To understand where the coal and the amphibian fossils came from, we need to go back into the past and look at past climates and the conditions that led to the formation of different rock types.

Room 4. Carboniferous Swamp Scene

Travel back in time 300 million years to the Carboniferous period and see the origins of the coal in Castlecomer and the animals and plants that eventually became the Castlecomer fossils.

Room 5. Fossil Room

A chance to see some of the fossils themselves. Look at plant fossils up close in display cases and even touch a 300 million year old plant stem. See the fossils transform into the ancient amphibians and make rubbings of fossil replicas.

Room 6. Mining Audio-Visual

A video presentation telling the history of coal mining in Castlecomer. Includes archive footage, interviews, photographs and footage of sites connected with coal mining in the local area.

Room 7. Interactive Mining Exhibition

Allows visitors to learn more about mining in Castlecomer. Includes displays of mining artefact's, an interactive mine model and information panels about mining in the area. Video interviews are divided into two distinct subjects; the Wandesforde family and the miners and unions.

Room 8. Mine Tunnel

A short crawl through tunnel allows children to experience the size of the tunnels that miners worked in on a daily basis. For adults, there are original coal carts and further photographs and information panels.

For more information on fossils and coal information

Fossils and Coal Formation

For more information on coal mining in Castlecomer

For more information on the Footprints in Coal Experience Exhibition contact Castlecomer Discovery Park