ONE of the leading night spots in west Donegal in the 1970s and 80s has been demolished.
The Maas Inn, on the main Glenties to Dungloe road, was razed to the ground last Saturday morning to make way for a new junction layout as the realignment of the N56 continues apace.
Originally the Maas Hotel, the popular bar and lounge was under the management of Brid and Mick Kennedy for many years. Local woman Ann Quinn worked with them.
“Buses came to us from all over the Rosses and as far away as Ballyshannon on their way to the Limelight – which was a dry hall – so they came to us for refreshments before heading on to the dance in Glenties,” Mrs Quinn recalled this week.
Giant Haystacks, one of the best-known professional wrestlers in the 1970s and 1980s, was one of the most famous names who had been booked to perform in the Maas Inn.
“The roof was too low for them to get the stage in and the show had to be transferred to the Highlands Hotel at the last minute,” she said.
The last owner was a man from Northern Ireland by the name of Colm O’Farrell. The former hotel was knocked down on a St Patrick’s Day to make room for the new bar and lounge.
“It was a big lounge for its day and all the top country and western bands played in the Maas Inn. People like Big Tom used to pack the place out.
“We also had live music midweek during the summer months on a Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. It was going mighty at the time. There were a lot of good memories from my time at The Maas Inn.
When the other halls got the bar licence buses no longer stopped at The Maas Inn.”