Descendants of cable visionaries to meet at site

Direct descendants of the men whose vision helped bring the transatlantic cable to Valentia Island, Co Kerry, in 1866 will meet for the first time this weekend on the Co Kerry site of the historic achievement.

The launch of the International Transatlantic Cable Heritage project will welcome Cyrus Field IV, the great-great-grandson of American businessman Cyrus Field, who promoted the project, and Adrian Fitzgerald, whose great-great-grandfather was responsible for facilitating the connection to Valentia.

“The cable has been uniting north America and Europe since the 1866, and the designation of Valentia as a potential World Heritage site acknowledges one of the first wonders of modern-day communication,” said Mr Field.