Members of the McDonagh family pictured outside the pub in 1930.

Railway Tavern in Manulla gets new lease of life

AN historic country pub has got a new lease of life with the reopening of the Railway Tavern in Manulla, outside Castlebar, writes Tom Gillespie.

The premises has been in the McDonagh family since the late 1800s but had been closed for the past nine years.

Now, after a five-year reconstruction project, Darren McDonagh, a great-grandson of the original owner, has reopened the enlarged pub, which incorporated a section of the old McDonagh household.

It is located close to Manulla Junction railway station where years ago passengers used to pop by for refreshments while waiting for the train to or from Ballina.

Darren acted as contractor on the project and has overseen the redevelopment while hiring in the various trades to complete the construction work.

He told me: “My great-grandfather, Mathias McDonagh, first built the premises as a shop and pub in the late 1800s. He passed it down to my grandfather, Walter McDonagh, who emigrated to America and it was his wife, Ellen, who raised my dad and his brothers and sisters. It was then passed down to my dad, Micheál, and mother Patsy and now it has been handed down to me.

The pub has been closed since 2013 when Winnie Wilson, who was running it, left. I have been renovating the premises for the last five years.

I have incorporated sections of the old house, the kitchen and sitting room area, into the new pub. We knocked the walls down and this area will be the new lounge and sports bar. I acted as contractor myself and I hired in the trades so I could keep a handle on it. It was a lot to take on especially when I am working in Redmac in Castlebar who sell machine parts.”

Darren intends to hold on to his daytime job and run the pub jointly with his wife Mary.

We have trebled the size of the premises from the old pub. It has got a lot bigger, with new toilets and store room, and we have a large car park.”

Hennelly’s in Manulla would be the nearest pub to the Railway Tavern, with Belcarra up the road. Many years ago John Tom Clarke’s pub was also in Manulla village and had the distinction of having a dance licence where only two couples were allowed on the dance floor at any one time because the pub was so small.

Darren hopes to finish work on the apartment upstairs once the pub is up and running.

Darren added: “One of the major factors facing country pubs are the drink driving laws. I have talked to many places similar to us and they have a drop home service, which we will have to offer as well, particularly at the weekends. We will pick a radius and drop people home. It is something we have to do because we are located in the country. It is the only way to get customers out and allow them to enjoy themselves.”

Darren, who did a couple of accountancy courses at Davitt College in Castlebar, has two brothers and two sisters and is married to Mary Ryan and they reside in Westport.

He added: “We are keeping the old name of the Railway Tavern. We are 200 metres from Manulla Junction. In the good old days when passengers were waiting for the train to come to change for Ballina they would come down here and have a couple of pints.

The most vivid memory of growing up in the pub as kids was that we had to be so quiet as our bedrooms were overhead. We had to be quiet going to bed and not jumping on the floor or making noise or anything that would annoy the customers downstairs.

The hum of the noise downstairs was always there. But on Christmas night or Good Friday, when the pub was closed, we would not be able to asleep, as the noise we got so used to was missing.

We always had a great clientele here. The locals were very supportive and I am looking forward to inviting them all back.

Would you believe, I only served behind the bar in the old pub on a few occasions. That was mainly because the pub was rented out since I was probably two. I would have been in as a customer and I would have helped out on those two occasions. I am hoping to make a success of this and I am looking forward to the challenge.

The pub scene has changed dramatically in recent years. In older times all you would have was beer and porter. But there is a huge choice now.”

Darren attended Manulla National School and Balla Secondary School. He then served his eight-year apprenticeship as a construction plant fitter in Kenny’s in Claremorris after which he got a job in Redmac in Castlebar where he has been for the past 15 years.

FLASHBACK: Pictured outside Walter McDonagh’s in Manulla in 1930 were the McDonaghs. From left: Gertie, Micheál (Darren’s dad), Hannah, Josie, John, Eileen, Ellen (grandmother) with baby Rose, Walter and Mattie.