Carr’s of the Diamond in Ballyare was the venue on Saturday night for the Salmon Inn, Ramelton reunion. The famous pub was destroyed by a fire in February 2003 and the reunion was the brainchild of former barman Kevin O’Hanlon and began earlier in the evening when they took the legendary bar manager John ‘Kissenger’ Coyle to the Silver Tassie Hotel for a meal. When they arrived in the Diamond they were joined by many regulars of the Salmon Inn and the wall was adorned with photos from the Bar. At the time of the fire the pub was owned by Hughie McGee from Letterkenny who purchased the premises in 1999. Prior to that it was owned by Joe Gormley from Ballindrait who had bought out Tommy Quinn and Mr. McCauley. Prior to that it was owned by John McCarron from the North when went over to Warrington to take up a pub there. John Kissenger Coyle began to work in the Salmon Inn in 1993 and he recalls some of the people that he trained to be bar workers including Kevin O’Hanlon, Charlie ‘Boots’ Boyce, Eugene Norry and Brian Sweeney from Moyle Hill.
