It is with regret that I post to note the passing of William Hogg, author of Millers & the Mills of Ireland of about 1850 and other works and leading light in the Mills and Millers of Ireland society.
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Category: IH News 2024
At first glance, this news article, flagging a planning permission notice looks interesting. Upon digging deeper, it just becomes confusing.
The planning permission notice is No. 2450084 in Donegal Co. Council. What is being sought is, in fact, retention permission – i.e., the work is already done.
The permission notice suggests that the land on either side of the original railway line has been lowered, bringing the line’s route back to being on an embankment and the land owner is seeking permission to retain this arrangement.
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R&H Hall Silos, Cork
RTE have an article about the demolition of the former R&H Hall grain silos in Cork Docks.
Local politics is always a goldmine for crazy suggestions that will never see the light of day. This call, reported on the Kildare Now website is no exception, with a councillor calling for the LUAS to be extended to Blessington, Co. Wicklow.
I would suggest a far better use of State resources would be a 3km extension of the DART+ WEST plan from the depot at One Mile Short to a new station west of Kilcock, near to the Musgraves depot, where this would also serve as a park & ride for car traffic off the M4.
Ballinamore station in Co. Leitrim was a junction station on the Cavan & Leitrim Railway, where the branch line to Arigna headed west. Both lines closed in 1959.
The station building was subsequently used as a secondary school until 2014. It and the wider site have been redeveloped as a community hub, known as “The Junction” which RTE reports has now opened for business.
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Automation of the Barrow Bridge
The Barrow Bridge on the mothballed Waterford to Rosslare Strand railway is an opening bridge, allowing for shipping access to/from New Ross.
The bridge is currently inoperable (academic due to the mothballing of the line) due to a maritime bridge strike. Irish Rail have stated that as part of the repair/re-opening of the bridge, they plan to automate the opening of the bridge, allowing for control to switch to the National Train Control Centre in Dublin.
One wonders why there are not similar plans for the canal lifting bridge at Newcomen Junction in Dublin.
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Poulaphoca Tram Station
In 1888, a standard gauge tram line opened between Dublin (Terenure) and Blessington in Co. Wicklow. At the Dublin end of the line, this connected physically to the Dublin tram network.
Realising the tourist potential of Poulaphoca, the line was extended (by a separate legal entity) from Blessington to Poulaphoca in 1895, with a station building and depot at the Poulaphoca station (as this was north of the River Liffey, it is in Co. Kildare). The extension closed in 1927 and the full line in 1932, having been excluded from the GSR merger in 1924/5.
The station building at Poulaphoca is currently for sale – however, as it has been on the market for some time, I would suggest that the asking price is too high.
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Up North, they do things differently
The BBC has reported on the successful prosecution of a landowner in Northern Ireland, for the demolition of a protected historic monument – 19th Century limekilns at Moneybroom. The verdict came with a £50,000 fine.
Republic of Ireland, take note.