Naas LHG Tour of Sallins
Report on a walk in Sallins.
The Naas Local History Group walk in Sallins on Wednesday evening 3 August may have been the first history walk on record that featured a visit to a pub midway through its itinerary! Earlier, despite looming clouds some thirty people turned out: some local Sallins folk, others from Naas, Clane and even participants from as far afield as Rathcoole and Clondalkin. The group led by Paddy Behan, Des Connolly and Liam Kenny was treated to an evening of history and local knowledge on Sallins, the railway, the canal, Odlums, Bodenstown, and many other features of the locality. The walk began in the railway station and recalled many memories of the golden age of rail in Sallins. More topical events were included too ... even the Sallins Mail train robbery got a mention. The walk continued to the unique prefabricated Sallins church ... one of the very few of its kind in the country. At that stage the group made for the shelter of the Railway Inn. As you can expect there was some difficulty getting everybody up from their cosy chairs to get out when the rain cleared but the gathering regrouped and continued to the canal bridge where the role of Sallins in the coming of the canal in 1780 was recalled. The sun was setting into a rain washed sky when History Group vice-chair Ronnie Kinane brought a great evening of Sallins lore to a conclusion.
