IN THE west of Co Waterford, one of Ireland's most elegant old railway stations is being rescued from decay and dilapidation, scraped down and restored to its former condition.
The Old Railway Station in the heritage town of Lismore, a Superb example of Victorian Gothic architecture, will shortly begin a new life as a place where Irish traditional skills will be fostered and taught.
John O'Neill and Caitriona Mac Reynolds a young couple with Northern Ireland backgrounds, have made the station both their home and their work-place. It is about to open as the Centre for Traditional Skills, where handcrafts which have almost disappeared may find a renaissance.
They bought the derelict station two years ago for £25,000 and set to work. Now its magnificent stonework, ironwork and wood panelling are again manifest as a fine example of 19th-century craftsmanship.
The then Duke of Devonshire, who maintained the nearby Lismore Castle as one of his several homes, built the station in 1876.
Its scale and style were in keeping with the grandeur of the castle, but it also served a number of vital economic functions for the area. When the local fishery was thriving, fresh salmon could be boxed, put on a train and arrive in London to be sold in Billingsgate market next morning.
The station was closed, along with the rail line from Dungarvan to Fermoy, in 1968. Its tracks were filled in and eventually a concrete block-built sausage factory was constructed within its confines.
Now the wood-panelled booking hall is being restored and will feature a display of railway history. John O'Neill, a self-taught cbairmaker, blacksmith and woodturner, has converted the vast stone goods shed, some 2,000 square feet, to house workshops for green woodturning, country carpentry, blacksmithing, tool-making and other traditional skills.
It will also have a gallery exhibiting handcrafted goods, working antique tools and craft tools, new and old. Local craft workers have been invited to participate. "If anyone locally wants to use the space, they're welcome to approach us," says John.
A Belfast man, he abandoned his electronics and hi-fi shop to take up woodturning on a foot-operated pole lathe. Because he could not find some of the traditional tools be needed, be taught himself blacksmithing and made them himself.
He has worked for and undertaken commissions for many organisations, including the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum and the Ulster History Park. He has been teaching for several years.
John and Caitriona aim to restore the station in almost every detail to the condition it was in in the 1920s. They want to encourage greater public interest in traditional skills by exhibiting the best work in wood, metal, basketry, stone and leather, and by having regular craft demonstrations.
A series of weekend courses will be offered throughout the summer in some of these skills, with invited expert instructors. They will seek to revive especially the traditional skills which were indigenous to that part of Ireland.
The couple explained that on visits to their friend, the writer, Dervla Murphy, who lives in the area, they had admired the old station. When it unexpectedly came on the market, they grabbed the chance to realise a lifelong dream.
They first restored the station-master's house, where they now live with their 18-month-old son, Ruairi. The external features have been retained and only a glass-walled conservatory added, with a large solar panel constructed from salvaged materials.
Restoring the extensive stonework is a huge task.
Some of the walls and pillars are of limestone blocks; others are sandstone, probably imported from Derbysbire.
The sausage factory building has been razed, and the materials salvaged for use elsewhere on the project.
Researching the history of the station, the couple found evidence that the platform and lines were once roofed with a cast iron and glass canopy, which was removed in the 1920s. They are keen to discover its fate, although replacing it would be unrealistically expensive.
The old station saw some grand ceremonial events in its time. Soon after it opened, the Prince of Wales passed through on his way to visit the Devonsbires. In 1904, King Edward VIIth and Queen Alexandra arrived.
The two platforms were designated for separate uses. The northern side was for loading livestock and goods. The southern platform was for passengers. "Only one exception was made to this rule, and that was for the Duke's racehorses," Jobn O'Neill notes.
Information on the courses and activities may be bad from telephone/fax: 058 - 53196.