The First Sligo Train (By David Casey

THE CORRAN HERALD • 2021/2022 The First Sligo Train

by David Casey

Railways were started in Ireland in 1834 with the opening of the Dublin to Kingstown (Dun Laoghaire) line. The Dublin to Longford extension was completed in 1855 and the engineer was William Dargan. The Sligo train was first run on the 3rd December 1862 just over a decade after the Great Famine. This was the opening of the extension of the railway line from Longford to Sligo by the Midland Great Western Railway. The contractors were Smyth & Knight.

A train left Sligo for Dublin at 7.15 am and another train departed Broadstone station in Dublin for Sligo at 8.30 am. The train departing Broadstone had the directors and chief officers of the Midland Great Western Railway on board. A reception was planned for their arrival in Sligo in the afternoon and a banquet in the Grand Jury room in the Court House in the evening.

The arrival of the train was eagerly awaited by the local people at the new stations along the railway line and there was cheering when it arrived at the various stations by all accounts. The new stations were Dromod, Carrick-on-Shannon, Boyle, Ballymote, Collooney, Ballisodare and Sligo. The architect of the buildings for the new railway stations was George Wilkinson. The train arrived in Sligo around 1.30pm. There was a large welcoming and cheering crowd. The Mayor and members of the Corporation and of the Town and Harbour Commissioners greeted the arrivals and there was a holiday in the town.

The first train to Sligo consisted of a steam train, a break van, another van, a first class carriage and a carriage known as the Dargan Saloon after the engineer William Dargan. The Dargan Saloon or Carriage no. 47 is part of the collection in the Ulster

First train in Sligo

Folk and Transport Museum at Cultra, Hollywood, Co Down. The Dargan Carriage is a link with the first Sligo train.

William Dargan

The following information is attached to the record of the Dargan carriage at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum. ‘HOYFM.277.1990 – Dargan Railway Carriage – MGWR Midland Great Western Railway saloon railway carriage used by William Dargan. William Dargan, the ‘father of Irish railways’, had this luxurious carriage built for his own use in 1844 when travelling to supervise his projects. Dargan was the leading Irish railway engineer of his generation. He constructed the first railway in the country – the Dublin & Kingstown – and many other major routes. Dargan presented his carriage to the Midland Great Western Railway on completion of the line from Athlone to Galway. It was used as a Directors’ saloon and by European royalty when visiting Ireland on hunting trips. The hooks on the roof gutter were for a communication cord one end of which was connected to the train engine’s whistle; passengers could pull the cord to attract the driver’s attention. Carriage no. 47 was at least in service until 1919, but in 1947 it was discovered being used as a paint store. It was rescued, given to the museum, and restored. Length 34ft approx; Gauge 5ft 3in; Wheel arrangement 6 wheel’.

Sources: McTernan, John C. In Sligo Long Ago: Aspects of Town and County over two centuries (Sligo, 2001). (142-162) Bowen-Walsh, Peter. (2016) The coming of the railways to Collooney and Ballisodare. The Sligo Field Club Journal Vol. 2, 2016. (84-102)