Glengowla Mines, Glengowla Oughterard, Co
Galway
H91 PX22
About Us
Glengowla Mines & Family Farm
Experience are owned and run by Keith
Geoghegan. The mines and farm have been
intrinsically entwined with the Geoghegan
family for generations. Their ancestors have
lived in Glengowla and worked in the mine
and farmed the land. After the mine closed, they moved
into the Mine Agent’s Cottage and continued to live in the
cottage until 1989.
In 1991, Keith began work excavating the mine and
transforming it into the visitor attraction it is today. Since
the visitor centre opened in 1998 many thousands of
visitors have enjoyed the experience and learned so much
about mining heritage in Connemara.
Throughout the centuries and through to
present day, there has always been a
working farm at Glengowla. Visitors to
the mine have often enquired about
farming and landscape of the
surrounding hills. This led to Keith putting on
demonstrations of how together with his sheepdog they
worked to herd the sheep. They were a big success and Jess
the sheepdog loved having an audience!
The same could be said for our turf
cutting demonstrations. Visitors keen to
soak up Irish history and culture loved
the smell of the bog fire always burning
in our reception area. A demonstration
of turf cutting went down a treat with some visitors eager
to cut the turf themselves.
The beauty of Glengowla has also been recognised by
those in the film industry and Glengowla has been the set
for movies and TV series.
Click here to find out more
And there you have it! A mine, a farm, one family, a
celebrity dog all brought together to give you Glengowla
Mines & Family Farm experience.
All our experiences are available to book from March
through to October
Glengowla Mines, Glengowla Oughterard, Co Galway H91 PX22