Foxdale

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Foxdale is a village on the Isle of Man. In Manx it’s called Forsdal and is also known as Balley’n Eas, meaning “waterfall town.” It sits along the A3 road between Castletown and Ramsey, near the junctions with the A24 to Braaid and the A40 The Hope road, in the parish of Patrick within the historic Glenfaba region.

Administratively, Foxdale is part of the Glenfaba & Peel constituency. It is represented in Tynwald and the House of Keys by Ray Harmer and Geoffrey Boot. Local services are run by Patrick Parish Commissioners.

Foxdale has a volunteers-run heritage centre. It used to be the end of the Foxdale Railway.

In the 1800s, there were about 13 mines in the Foxdale area, including five that mined the Foxdale shear. They produced zinc blende, lead ore and silver. The mines were later run by the Isle of Man Mining Company and closed in 1911 after a number of incidents, including a death from sulphur dioxide poisoning.

Today the best-known feature is the Victoria Clock Tower. Built by the Isle of Man Mining Company and designed by Foxdale’s mine engineer John Nicholls, it stands about 40 feet tall and is visible across the valley. The dedication ceremony was on 16 May 1901.

Foxdale also has a film link: parts of the 2006 movie Miss Potter were filmed there.