Bundoran
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bundoran Bun Dobhráin |
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WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates:
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| Irish grid reference G8761 |
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| Statistics | ||
| Province: | Ulster | |
| County: | County Donegal | |
| Population (2006) - Town: - Environs: |
1,706 1,964 |
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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 (Bundoran GAA).
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[edit] History
[edit] 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.[citation needed]
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 todays 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. 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.
[edit] 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 Bily Mulhern called the Directors of the Central Hotel a "bunch of shaddy aracters" in the Council Chambers and that "NO monument will be placed near the new Central Hotel".
[edit] 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.[1]
[edit] 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.[2] This claim has been resisted by many members of Bundoran Town Council, some of the Councillors are developers themselves. Even the Council Chairman Billy Mulhern is a Director of Solumont Ltd along with the McEniff family.
With no sign of any Sewerage treatment plant for Bundoran, Where all this new development sewerage is going? How much pollution will Bundoran pump into the Sea before we loose our Blue Flag status? Bundoran Town Council put profit before Health and development before safety.
[edit] Surfing
In recent times Bundoran has become synonymous with Irish surfing.[3] 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.
[edit] People
One of the pioneers of the Credit Union movement in Ireland, the late Fr. Paddy Gallagher, came from the town.[citation needed]
Bundoran has a Town Council consisting of 9 elected members and a Town Manager and Town Clerk. The Civic Offices are located at Station Road, Bundoran.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Bundoran station. Railscot - Irish Railways. Retrieved on 2007-09-13.
- ^ Tackiest Town Lonely Planet opinion
- ^ "Emerald Swell: Riding the Frigid Waves of a Raging Sea", New York Times, 27 March 2008
[edit] External links
