The history of the Grand Canal and the Barrow Way is covered elsewhere on the site. 

 

Sallins

Before the late 18th century, Sallins was a small hamlet. Its growth really began with the building of the Grand Canal, which reached Sallins in 1779, and passenger services starting around 1780. This gave Sallins transport links for both goods and people. The arrival of the Dublin–Cork railway line in the mid-19th century was another key factor. Sallins got its railway station in 1846. The canal and the railway turned Sallins into a transport hub, facilitating trade, commuting, and growth. Sallins has since grown as a commuter town given its proximity to Dublin and sits on the main Dublin to Cork/ Waterford/ Limerick rail line. 

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Greenway

The planning of the greenway to Hazelhatch begun in 2019 and funds were secured. Construction was held up during Covid and work eventually started in late 2022. This also involved building a pedestrian bridge over the canal at the start of the greenway in Sallins. The section between Sallins and Hazelhatch Bridge was opened in 2024. Note that the border between Co. Kildare and Co. Dublin occurs at Aylmer Bridge just 2 Kms from Hazelhatch Bridge. Work on the 4.5 Kms section between Hazelhatch bridge to Lock 12 in Dublin has commenced and should open in 2026. 

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Theobald Wolfe Tone

Bodenstown cemetery is within 2 Kms north of the greenway at Sallins. The cemetery contains a ruined medieval church dating back to 1352, but is best known as the burial place of the Irish patriot, Theobald Wolfe Tone. The grave is visited each year by prominent politicians on the Sunday closest to Tone's birthday in June. Wolfe Tone, a Protestant, joined the 1798 Rebellion against British rule in Ireland, was convicted of treason and hanged in that year. He remains a powerful symbol of Irish Republicanism to this day.

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Sallins Train Robbery

Sallins had another brush with violent republicanism in 1976 when a train was robbed outside Sallins. The event has had long term effects in Irish Law in relation to civil liberties and police accountability. It led to legal precedents on the treatment of those in custody, state compensation and pardons for wrongful convictions.

The train was stopped near Hazelhatch, just outside Sallins, when a gang using a red light signal caused the driver to reverse to a level crossing. Armed men boarded the mail van, forced guards, crew and postal workers at gunpoint. Mail bags were thrown down and transferred to waiting vehicles. Some of the gang had earlier commandeered cars by pretending to be Gardaí (police) and held a family hostage to secure vehicles. Approximately £200,000 in cash, plus valuables and postal orders was stolen.

Ultimately five members of the Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP) were arrested: Osgur Breatnach, Nicky Kelly, Brian McNally, Michael Plunkett, and John Fitzpatrick. The group claimed that they had been beaten during interrogation in Garda custody. Most of the accused (except Plunkett) signed confessions, but under duress.

The first trial was in the Special Criminal Court in Dublin. It turned into the longest criminal trial in Irish history. After 65 days the trial collapsed when one of the three judges (Judge John O’Connor) died. Bizarrely, there had been reports that he had been nodding off in court during the case. 

In the second trial, McNally, Breatnach, and Kelly were found guilty (Kelly in absentia, having fled the country to the US). Their convictions were based principally on their confessions. Medical evidence of injuries was presented later in the trial, but the court largely rejected the evidence considering that it was not inflicted by Gardaí, suggesting instead that injuries were self-inflicted or inflicted by co-accused. 

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Later on appeal, the convictions of Osgur Breatnach and Brian McNally were quashed by the Court of Criminal Appeal, on the grounds that their confessions were obtained under duress.

Nicky Kelly returned from the U.S. in 1980 expecting acquittal but found he was still required to serve the sentence because the appeal window had passed. This caused outrage in the press and among the public as it was clear that he was an innocent man. The ensuing campaign to release him became a symbol of the 1980s with 'Free Nicky Kelly' graffiti posted throughout the country. He spent years in prison and went on hunger strike. In 1984 he was released on humanitarian grounds and received a presidential pardon in 1992, along with over a million pounds as compensation following campaigns by Irish and international organisations such as Amnesty International. He later became a politician.

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This RTÉ programme by producer Michael Heney from 1991 was pivotal in the eventual decision to grant Nicky Kelly a Presidential Pardon. 

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