Bundoran

Infobox Irish Place
name = Bundoran
gaeilge = Bun Dobhráin
crest

motto =
map

pin coords = left: 50px; top: 109px
north coord = 54.4754
west coord = 8.2838
irish grid = G8761
area =
elevation = 0- 32 m
county = County Donegal
province = Ulster
dailconstituency = Donegal South West
EU constituency = North-West
IEpostcode =
stdcode = +353 71 98
town pop = 1,706
rural pop = 1,964
census yr = 2006
web = |cite web
url = http://www.cso.ie/census/documents/census2006_Table_7_and_12.pdf
title = Table 7 - Persons in each town of 1,500 population and over, ...
accessdate = 2008-02-13
date = 2007-04-26
format = PDF
work = Census 2006, Volume 1 - Population Classified by Area
publisher = Central Statistics Office
pages = pages 119]
rural pop =
census yr = 2006
timezone = GMT
utc_offset = +0
timezone_DST = BST
utc_offset_DST = +1
web = www.bundoran.ie

Bundoran ("Bun Dobhráin" in Irish) is a town on the coast of County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in Ireland. Attractions include a beach/seafront, golf course and swimming pool with slides. The town is located on the N15 road near Ballyshannon approximately 3 and a half hours drive from Dublin but this has decreased with the opening of a new inner relief road in Sligo.

Bundoran is popular for surfing, with a beach in the centre of town (Main Beach), and another beach, Tullan Strand, close by. Main Beach has lifeguards on duty during the summer months. Tullan Strand has rip currents which make it unsafe for swimming, but it is a popular surfing beach during the summer, with bigger waves than in the town. Rossnowlagh, 15 minutes drive from Bundoran, is the safest beach for beginner surfers, with no rip currents and lifeguards on duty. There is a popular walk from Main Beach to Tullan strand around the cliffs called rougy walk. The local Gaelic Athletic Association club is Realt na Mara.

History

Origins

Its initial claim to fame was as a place of relaxation for "the Ascendancy", and even into the early part of the 20th century was advertised as the Brighton of Ireland, in travel and tourist literature. fact|date=May 2008

Bundoran, or as it is known in Irish "Bun Dobhrain" (which means the foot of the little water), was up until over a century ago, two separate villages. Bundoran was the village "west" of the bridge over the River Bradog. This area is now known as "the West End". East of the bridge, around 2 kilometres away, was the village of Single Street. In between these two separate communities lay the historic townland of Drumacrin. The area of Drumcacrin is now part of what is today's town centre. It was only after the opening of the railway station in 1866, which was called "Bundoran", that the two distinct communities developed and merged to what we known today as Bundoran. Single Street was where the majority of the local native population lived. Across the bridge, in what is now the West End, was the area of residence favoured by the more affluent classes.

The first official mention of Bundoran was in 1777 when Viscount Enniskillen built Bundoran Lodge, his summer residence. This building still exists to this day and is now known as Homefield House, Bayview Avenue. The Viscount seems to have started a trend amongst his contemporaries as more and more of them discovered Bundoran and visited it to enjoy the seaside location and the associated health benefits.

With the advances in travel, in particular the railway, Bundoran's popularity spread across the class barriers. With the opening of the railway link to Belfast and onto Dublin more and more people from the east coast of Ireland discovered the appeal of Bundoran and returned year after year. It was during this period that Bundoran emerged as one of Ireland's most popular seaside resorts. Certainly by the end of the nineteenth-century, it had become one of the main seaside resorts in Ulster. Hotels and lodging houses started to spring up around the town. The best-known hotel and indeed one of Bundoran's best landmarks the Great Northern Hotel was constructed by the Great Northern Railway Company during this period. In 1977 Cie sold The Great Northern Hotel & Golf Links to Brian & Sean McEniff and Brian's brother-in-law, Martin Burke, for £100,000.

Central Hotel Fire

A fire at the Central Hotel in the heart of the town on Friday 8 August 1980 killed ten people, including both locals and holiday makers. The fire, which occurred at the busiest time of the year, was one of the worst in the Irish history and was featured in the RTÉ television programme "Disasters" in August 2007.

After the screening of the "Disasters" documentary in 2007, the Town Council voted to erect a permanent monument in remembrance of those who lost their lives in the blaze. nearly a year on and with the "Disasters" programme being repeated on Monday 9th June 2008 on RTE1 about the Central Hotel Fire, there still is no monument to the people that lost their lives. The Chairman of Bundoran Town Council, Billy Mulhern, called the Directors of the Central Hotel a "bunch of shady characters" in the Council Chambers and that "NO monument will be placed near the new Central Hotel".

In the September 2008 Council meeting, Bundoran Town Council under the pressure of the Disasters programme have agreed to purchase a new stain glass window for the Catholic Church listing the names of the ten people who lost their lives. The Council will also place a seat somewhere on the beach as a mark of "respect". Unfortunately, Bundoran Council have never discussed the memorial whith the victims families.

Transport

*In April 2006 the new 80 million euro Bundoran/Ballyshannon bypass rendered the resort more accessible for visitors who come there each summer. The Drowes River where the southern part of the bypass commences and which separates Leitrim and Donegal is also the demarcation point between the provinces of Connacht to the south and Ulster to the north. It was the largest major infrastructural development in the south of the county, since the inception of the Great Northern Railway (Ireland), which ran to Bundoran between 1866 and 1957.
*Bundoran railway station opened on 13 June 1866, but finally closed on 1 October 1957. [cite web | title=Bundoran station | work=Railscot - Irish Railways | url=http://www.railscot.co.uk/Ireland/Irish_railways.pdf | accessdate=2007-09-13] The New Council Offices carpark is where the Bundoran Railway Station once stood and could have been preserved. However the Council decided to demolish the RAILWAY STATION.

Recent development

Bundoran has seen much development over the past decade, due to its popularity as a seaside destination and the availability of tax reliefs for the development of holiday homes. Lonely Planet has described Bundoran as "one of Ireland's tackiest resorts" and states that the town has been ruined by overdevelopment. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4643030.stm Tackiest Town "Lonely Planet" opinion] ] This claim has been resisted by many members of Bundoran Town Council, many of whom are developers themselves.

SCHOOLS

From 1892 On Railway Road stands the St. Louis School owned by the Parish of Bundoran. St Louis School wasbuilt in 1892, the buildings included a School and residence for the Sisters of St. Louis. One of the impressive buildings still stands today. Around the same time the Sister of St. Louis had their Secondary School beside the OLD GRAND CENTRAL CINEMA in the premises known as the Sea View Hotel.

The St. Joseph`s orphanages were magnificent Stone buildings erected from funds bequeathed by the late Miss Sarah Crudde, Newtownbutler. These buildings later became known as Ard Lughaidh and in 2006 the VEC demolished these magnificant Stone buildings. All that is left on the lands is the extension area used till 1980`s by live in students of the Ard Lughaidh, however this is now under the Donegal Adventure Centre ownership.

Surfing

In recent times Bundoran has become synonymous with Irish surfing. [ [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/world/europe/27surfers.html?em&ex=1206763200&en=3b426a1ccc63c7fc&ei=5087%0A "Emerald Swell: Riding the Frigid Waves of a Raging Sea"] , "New York Times", 27 March 2008] Bundoran is unusual in that it has Surf breaks suitable for beginners and people looking to improve as well as world class surf for those who really know how to carve up the waves. Bundoran's variety of accommodation options from caravan to hostel, luxury apartments and cottages to 4 star hotels mean there is always many tourists in the summer.

People

One of the pioneers of the Credit Union movement in Ireland, the late Fr. Paddy Gallagher, came from the town. Fact|date=September 2007

Bundoran has a Town Council consisting of 9 elected members. Councillors Eamon Barett FG, Denise Connolly FG, Billy Mulhern FF, Elizabeth McEniff/McIntyre FF, Philip McGlynn FF, Sean McEniff FF, Florence Doherty McNulty Ind, Michael McMahon FF/SF, Tiernan Brady FF.

The Council Officials are the Town Manager Sean Sheridan and Town Clerk -Joe McNulty, responsible for the EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS of the Council. The Civic Offices are located at Station Road, Bundoran.

Bundoran GAA

Bundorans best known GAA personality and 1992 hero is Brian McEniff

Bundoran GAA was founded in 1917 and at a time of Irelands struggle for Independence affected the locations for playing the GAA. In the 1920`s and the ideal location of Bundoran on the Railway line made Bundoran local ground a excellent venue for many Big games. The GAA club grounds was purchased in 1938. The reorganisation and new name "The Star of the Sea" members at the time being Eddie Quinn, Jim Doherty - Captain, Frank O`Gorman, Eddie Lynch, Jas. A. Doherty, Joe Doherty, Tommy Campbell, P.J. Gilmartin, P. McManus.

In the 1950`s the Juniors were successful in 1956 and 1960 Championships. In 1963 "Star of the Sea joined with Ballyshannon team "Aodh Rua" to become "St. Joseph`s". GAA took a leap into fast open playing which included many players that contributed to the Donegal team, namely Brian McEniff,Michael McLoone, Seamie Granaghan, Declan O`Carroll and Brenard Brady.

In 1977 Bundoran and Ballyshannon reformed their own town clubs to encourage junior teams and grass roots support.

Bundoran Post Offices

In the 1950 the Post Office was located at No. 2 bayview Terrace, Bundoran and was open seven days a week.

See also

* List of towns in Ireland
* List of RNLI stations

References

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4643030.stm BBC View]
* [http://www.donegaladventurecentre.net Donegal Adventure Centre]