An Amateur radio station, EI0MAR, is located in the tower. The Martello tower was built in 1805, one of many built around the coast to guard against a possible invasion by Napoleon. The first telegraph line under the Irish Sea was terminated in the tower in 1852, and subsequently other telegraph cables were laid, and in 1913 the first telephone cable to the south of Ireland. Lee De Forest, the American experimenter, had an experimental station here in 1903, and the Marconi Company had one in 1905.
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The tower now belongs to Fingal County Council, and is a protected structure. The collection is the private collection of Pat Herbert, the Curator. The Museum is non profit making, any proceeds left after expeses have been paid go to charity. On July 20 1898 Guglielmo Marconi transmitted the results of the Kingstown (now Dún Laoghaire) Regatta to the Harbour Master’s house (Moran House) by Radio using Morse Code. These were relayed by telephone to the offices of the Dublin Daily Express newspaper. This was the first ever use of radio to report a sporting event. A hundred years later his daughter Elettra was present at the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate the event.
- Adult – €5.00
- Student – €3.00
- Pensioner – €3.00
- Unemployed – €3.00
- Children – FREE
