- Ballyglunin Railway Station is just north of the Galway to Roscommon Road. Coordinates 53.431051, -8.793599
Have Google Earth? Download a K.M.L. of this location.
Townland - Coolfowerbeg (Coolflowerbeg).
Electoral Division of Ballynapark and in the Civil Parish of Abbeyknockmoy.
Attached and to the East of the Brooklodge Demense (Domain). - See Youtube Video
- As with the Galway to Clifden Railway Line, these Stops and Pick-ups were close to places of importance, even if in the middle of nowhere. In this case, the Blakes were the local Landlords, and lived in a fine House to the West of here (53.422729, -8.823522).
- Just North of the Abbert River and the narrow Bridge which it traverses.
53.428435 , -8.794697
Video above, filmed during the Irish Lock Down of May '21. The Roads were quiet, for a Rural Area, and I was the minority Torist that day.
It is a beautiful area.
- The Quiet Man.
- John Wayne
- Castletown
- Frank Mahon
- Signal Man
- Open
- Closed
- The Limerick to Claremorris Railway Line
- Shed / Goods Store
- Old Maps
- Stone Work
Local Bridges.
Pallas Bridge Ballyglunin Bridge
- Finn's Cross
- Brooklodge House
- Blake
- Beet.
- The Derreen River. This is the most local River which sources around Monivea and conributes to the volume of the Clare River, in Corofin, Galway.
The Bridge to the South.
The Bridge on the Roscommon Road, formerly known as the Ballyglunin Bridge, with the Road underneath.
Open
Open in 1860 - earlier than its Connemara counterparts, you may note.
Authority in charge - The Waterford, Limerick and Western Railway (W.L.W.R.).
Closes for the last time in 1976.
Authority at this Time - C.I.E. (Coras Iompair Eireann - Irish language, for Transport System of Ireland)
The Quiet Man.
The Quiet Man was the name of a 1952 Film which had a segment which was shot in this Ballyglunin Station.
The Script Writer (presumably?), decided to use the Name of Castletown, instead its actual one. Filming date - 1951.
A Name Plate, which reflects this, is still to be seen.
The main charcters of the Film were John Wayne and Maureen O Hara. John, wonders about the whereabout of Inisfree - another mythical location, and gets architypical Irish answeres of that time?
Signal Men.
Close to the Station but on the Tracks, are two Signal Men. They are fabricated from Railway Tracks, are well done as Artistisc endevours, and you'd think that someone was on the Line, from a distance.
What seems basic enough - the assembly of local Iron into a pattern, is not simple at all.. These are cool.
A Plaque of appreciation, is mounted on the Wall of the Goods Store / Shed, which reads "FRANK MAHON, 1951 - 2015 A Playwright, Producer, Attorney, Chicago U.S.A.
In appreciation of his contribution to the Ballyglunin Restoration Project.
),His stage adaptation of aurice Walshes "The Quiet Man" received its Irish premiere
in this building to great acclaim in 2013 and 2014, ensuring his place in our hearts forever."
The Limerick to Claremorris Line
- Raliway Line Name - The Limerick to Claremorris Line - a distance of 95 Miles with Trains rolling through Limerick, Clare, Galway and Mayo. Thirty Men worked on this Line earning 30,000 Irish Pounds per year.
C.I.E. claimed that this was a loss maker of 250,000 Irish Pounds per year, and for the Passenger Service alone. They seemed more partial to the expansion of their Ezpressway Bus Service.
Railways, were subsidixed to the tune of 20 Milliion Irish Pounds in 1976.
To give an idea of times that were in it, Buses did not have Toilets, and C.I.E. had Regulations to provide Toilets on Train Journeys in excess of one and a half hours.
There is a wonderful in the Galway Advertser about Crumlin Bridge, also on this Line. A Local Study into the name of Ballyglunin, is within.
That overhead Bridge in the Town of Gort, carried it too, and has a Steet so named.
Old Maps
The 25 inch Map shows us Pallas Bridge which crosses over the Derreen River, The Goods Store, an Infant's Burial Ground, the Platform and Lines, the Station House, a Level Crossing to the North, the Townland of Coolfowerbeg, the Goods Store and Cattle Pen.
Stonework
Consistent with the Galway to Clifden Railway Line and the Buildings along it - this Building is predominiately Limestone being the indigenous Rock.
The Goods Store / Shed.
The Pallas Bridge.
- The Pallas Bridge is about a half Mile South of the Station, and crosses over the Derreen River on its journey from the Monivea Area to Corofin, where it melts into the River Clare.
- 53.428435, -8.794697
- Townlands - Ballyglooneen and Brooklodge Demesne.
- Download K.M.Z.
- Used to have 14 Arches / Eyes - giving some idea of general drainage in the past.
- See Youtube Video, complete with Sheep noises.
Ballyglunin Bridge.
The Ballyglunin Bridge was the second one to the South of the Station, after the Palls Bridge. It was basically dismantled in June of 2017. Today (2021), you can pass through its former location on the N63 Road, and never detect its past.
It was a Bridge, over the Road - built, the way they were built at the time - well, and in cut :Limestone.
As time advanced and 2 way Vehicular travel, had to be accomodated beneath it, it looked narrow.
Its height was defined, at the time of its construction, making it low as well. This was compounded by the fact that the Road beneath it, was prone to minor and seasonal floolding - but the road level could not be lifted either.
Its day was done, and now it is, no more.
There is a great image and description of its removal, in the Connacht Tribune.
- 53.421720, -8.788024
- Download K.M.L.
- An Aerial image from 2014 - (click on it, for a larger version).
Finn's Cross
Finn's Cross, was the name of the Cross-roads nearest the Station and on the Galway to Roscommon Road. That Family had a Shop.
53.420806, -8.790819°
Download, K.M.L.
Brooklodge House
- Half a Mile to the South-West. In ruins now - standing, but a carcass.
Martin J. Blake lived here for a time. You might not even notice its prominence in History, unless told of it. - 53.426724, -8.802484
Blake
- The Blake's were the last great Landowner's associated with what is commonly known as Ballyglunin (Ballyglooneen).
This Estate was bought from them, by the Congested District Board (later, to be known as the Land Commission) around 1916, for 60,000 British Pounds. - Martin Blake bought the Ballyglunin Estate (10,000 Acres) in 1672 , from Holcroft.
The main House, that is associated with the Blake's is the one that is known as the Ballyglunin Park / Ballyglunin House - - 53.425323, -8.810433
- Download K.M.Z.
- This, is well kept now, In the 1980's, it was a Gardening Business (Fahy), and a refuge for a Religious Cult for another while, but currently is a beautiful House for hire..
Beet
Beet, was a Crop which looked something like a Turnip, but when pulverised, could be used for Sugar production. The remains of this pulverisation, was fed to Cattle and generally known as Pulp. We ate this Pulp as unwary Children, not out of hunger but experiment, and for its sweet taste.
During Beet harvesting Season, it was everywhere to be seen - piled, at the Roadside, for collection. Three or four, processing Plants, were on this Island - the closest being Tuam, and known as the Sigar Factory.
- Beet, was transported through the Irish Railway Network, It, got as far as that Network, by various Vehicles.
- See a Film Archive, of the Tuam Sugar Factory, from 1986.