Kiltulla & District Vintage Show on track for 8th edition (2025)

Kiltulla & District Vintage Show & Family Fun Day is on track to return this May Bank Holiday weekend, with the main event – including the Loughrea & Attymon railway exhibition – on Sunday, May 4 at Kiltullagh, Athenry, Co. Galway.

Now in its eighth year, the weekend kicks off with the ever-popular auto jumble, running on Saturday, May 3 and Sunday, May 4.

Sunday’s main show and family fun day will feature a collection of vintage cars, tractors, trucks, motorbikes, a display of steam engines, and a large exhibit from Emerald Roadmakers.

Visitors to the show can enjoy live threshing, a saw bench and wood-cutting display, and demonstrations of old time farming techniques such as butter churning. Live music, a dedicated children’s entertainment field, and food and trade stalls are also part of the programme.

New for 2025 is a special celebration of local heritage, the Loughrea & Attymon railway exhibition, marking 50 years since the closure of the branch line and commemorating its 85-year history.

In partnership with Dunsandle railway station, the display will feature over 120 rare photographs, archival newspaper reports, and personal railway stories, capturing the spirit and legacy of this iconic local railway.

Opened on December 1, 1890, and officially closed on November 3,1975, the Loughrea and Attymon railway served as a vital nine-mile lifeline connecting rural Galway to the national rail network.

From as early as 1835, local gentry, clergy, and political figures in Loughrea began lobbying for the construction of a railway, concerned that the town and surrounding areas would be left isolated from the rest of the country’s expanding rail network.

Their fears were realised in 1846 when Loughrea was excluded from the main Galway railway line, but influential local leaders -including Lord Dunkellin, Bishop Thomas Duggan, and landowners such as Lord Dunsandle – persisted in campaigning for rail access.

Their efforts culminated in the passing of the Loughrea Railway Act, which authorised the formation of the Loughrea and Attymon Light Railway Company.

Construction of the branch line from Attymon to Loughrea began in 1889, navigating difficult terrain through Killimordaly bog, with Dunsandle the only intermediate station, marking it as the last branch line of its kind to be laid in Ireland.

Operated by the Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR), then the third largest Irish gauge railway company in the country, the line was the shortest railway in Co. Galway.

For nearly 85 years, the Loughrea and Attymon Light Railway played an integral role in the area’s economic and social development. It facilitated trade, boosted agriculture, and supported local industries.

The railway also impacted significantly on education, employment, and leisure, while also influencing patterns of emigration.

Prominent figures like Lady Gregory utilised the railway to ship wood from her estate at Coole, as did Lord Dunsandle from his own lands.

The railway was instrumental in major local developments, such as the construction of Loughrea cathedral, with materials brought in via the line.

In 1903, special trains were even commissioned for the consecration of Dr. Thomas O’Dea as bishop of Clonfert, bringing guests from Dublin and Galway.

Despite its importance to the area, the line faced ongoing threats of closure, largely due to growing competition from buses and lorries.

During World War II, rail service was reduced from four trains per day to two, while in 1947, severe snowfall led to the suspension of services entirely, which did not resume until June of that year.

Over the years, Loughrea ratepayers subsidised the railway in a bid to keep it running, holding public meetings to protest against closure proposals.

However, the mounting pressure from modern transport alternatives proved insurmountable and the line was closed in 1975.