The 2024 conservation plan to conserve the north and south walls along with repairing the kissing gate at the road entrance as well as replacing the wooden gate at the church entrance was submitted to the Heritage Council in March 2024 and approved and funded by the Heritage Council in May.
The project started to get underway with a site meeting at the church ruins with members of the committee along with all those working on the project.
These included Dr. Joe Gallagher; Co Donegal Heritage Officer. Geraldine McManus; Conservation Architect; Gráinne Kelly, Archaeologist; Michael McGroarty; Stonemason and contractor on the project. Also participating were members of the committee.
In October conservation work on the north and south walls began with scaffolding being erected around the church. The walls were re-pointed using hot lime mortar and this work continued off and on for the following month.
In the meantime Quinn Ironworks removed the kissing gate bringing it to their workshop and replaced the corroded and missing iron bars on the gate and additionally got the whole structure powder coated in black paint. This process will prevent weathering and rusting for many years to come.
The last part of our 2024 Conservation plan was put in place on the 14th November, when the new wooden gate for the entrance to Kilbarron Church was erected. The old wooden gate placed there some fifty years ago was in a poor state of repair and needed to be replaced.
The new gate was made by the Ballyshannon Mens’ shed and is an exact copy of the old gate which was placed there by the late Louis Emerson who may have used the facilities of the Ballyshannon Technical School and the woodwork pupils to make the original gate.
Perhaps someone out there might have worked on the original gate?
Anyhow a great thanks to Paddy Donagher and Patsy Quinn and all the men who worked on the gate and have done such a brilliant job.
The new gate was made by the Ballyshannon Mens’ shed and is an exact copy of the old gate which was placed there by the late Louis Emerson who may have used the facilities of the Ballyshannon Technical School and the woodwork pupils to make the original gate.
Perhaps someone out there might have worked on the original gate?
Anyhow a great thanks to Paddy Donagher and Patsy Quinn and all the men who worked on the gate and have done such a brilliant job.
Some pictures of the work on the gate by the Ballyshannon Mens’ Shed
