Around the year 1930, there were about 400 residents in Salthill and it was attracting large number of visitors and tourists who came in the summer. There was provision at the time for the building of some 100 homes. The population was growing but there was no church in the area. Any resident or tourist who wished to go to Mass had to travel into the Jesuit Church or St Joseph’s, or out west to the chapel in Barna.
And so, in June 1934, a meeting of residents was convened in the Hangar Ballroom to consider the necessity of a church in Salthill. It was felt that Salthill required a moral influence and a church would provide that. Canon Nestor said a church would attract many people to Salthill, especially old people and invalids who would be sent here by doctors. Canon Davis suggested the placing of collection boxes in hotels and lodging houses in the district. They seemed to give the impression that tourists would pay for the construction, whereas it was the locals who actually did so.
The Christian Brothers donated the site, known as Monksfield, “a gem set in incomparable surroundings”. The foundation stone was laid on June 16, 1935. WH Byrne was the architect and Owen Larkin from Ballinasloe did the building. The style is described as Lombardic Romanesque, “A happy departure from the almost universal monotony of the Gothic design of our churches”. The building was 142 feet long and 82 feet wide. It was cruciform in shape and consisted of a nave, transepts and sanctuary surmounted in the centre with an octagonal dome, lighted with eight circular headed windows and carried on pendentives. The nave and transepts were covered with barrel vaults, the piers supporting these being ornamented with rope mouldings and foliated capitals.
The marble work was done by Irish Marble Industries of Merlin Park, James Stewart & Co made all the seats and confessionals and the electric lighting was supervised by Mr R Ryan. It was designed to contain four side altars. Initially, the altars were wooden structures but it was hoped to replace those with marble ones.
The church was dedicated to Christ the King. The first Mass was celebrated here in July 1936 by Bishop Doherty. It was part of St Joseph’s Parish until November 22, 1952 when the parish of Salthill was formed. Canon Peter Davis was the priest in charge. He was followed by Canon John Joe Hyland (1952–1965 ), Monsignor Michael Spelman (1965–1991 ), Canon Jack O’Connor (1991–2000 ) and Fr Gerry Jennings.
In 1954, a beautiful side altar of green Connemara marble and a mosaic which is a representation of the Blessed Virgin and St Anne was presented to the church by Tomás Bán Concannon in memory of his wife, the late Helena Concannon who was the first to ask to have a Novena in honour of St Anne celebrated in the church.
In the mid 1960s, the church underwent major reconstruction, large additions were built on to the front and the back making it the building that is almost square today. The people of Galway had been asked to make a weekly contribution for several years towards the building of the cathedral, and as this collection came to an end, the people of Salthill were asked to contribute to this reconstruction.
There is a beautiful carved crucifix by Clare Sheridan in the church as well as a sculpted piece by Oisín Kelly, but apart from those, the building is lacking in character.
Our first photograph was taken from Kenny’s Sweet Shop (where the Galleon is today ) in the 1930s, shortly after the church was built. In the distance on the right, you can see part of what later became the Glendawn, a bed & breakfast run by the Burke family. Our illustration of an advertisement looking for support for the project dates from 1935. The second photograph was taken from across the street c1940.
