In Reply to: re: river query posted by Bowser on November 30, 2006 at 08:18:50:

Just upstream from the point where the Marian Row river enters the town river were what was known locally as the Three Pillars. These were as the name suggests three concrete pillars, one on each side of the river and one in the middle of the river. There were slots on the sides of the pillars to allow large planks to be slid down them . This allowed the lavel of the lake to be adjusted and it also allowed the workers in the Moy Drainage Scheme to work down stream on a dry river bed.The new arrangement eas built in the late 1960's and the pillars were removed.
There was alot of debate at the time regarding the narrowness of the new footbridge. When the new weir was completed it was used as a swimming
area. There were some who used to dive off the bridge into the centre area in front of the weir which was deeper than the surrounding area. The diver had to be exact on his dive as there was a concrete edge aound his target area. Over the years this area, as well as the area behind the sluice has all become silted up and could do with a proper clean up. The town river and Lake area which were always great amenity areas to generations of Castlebar people have been the victim of some badly thought out and short sighted developements by both Town and County Councilsin the last 20 years.