The Old Train House - History
Ballyhooly Station - Before and After
The decline of railway usage in the 1960s for both goods and passenger transport was as a result of the increased ownership of private cars and an improved road network making road haulage more economically viable. The mainline between Mallow and Waterford was a casualty of this decline in the railways and on the 4th of August 1968, the last CIE train passed through Ballyhooly station before the tracks were removed permanently.
The photos below were taken by John and Jackie Ryan around the time of the final closure. They give us an insight into how the station looked before and after its closure. At a time in the late 60s when many fine old buildings were being destroyed or neglected around Ireland in favour of modern bungalows, the Ryans had the foresight to see the potential of these old railway buildings.
Our thanks to Jackie for the use of these photos.
The Ghost of Ballyhooly
Fans of the American writer Betty Cavanna will be familiar with her work “The Ghost of Ballyhooly”. Little has changed in our village since Ms. Cavanna spent time here and published “The Ghost” in 1971.
We are happy to guide fans to where key scenes take place. Those who take the time to explore the area will find that the scenes described in the book are extremely accurate and surely add to the enjoyment of reading the book and following the intrigue.
We always keep a copy of the book available for guests to borrow during their stay.