Larch Hill - Link With Scouting

Link With Scouting

In 1937 Prof. J.B.Whelehan, the then Chief Scout, together with the National Executive Board of CBSI (later Scouting Ireland (CSI)), decided to purchase a campsite. Many venues were suggested, but eventually two options remained. One was Santry Demesne, part of which is now the Morton Stadium for athletics, near Dublin Airport, and the other was Larch Hill. The decision fell to the casting vote of Prof. Whelehan, whose foresight saw that the Santry site would become part of the city far more quickly than its south-side counterpart.

The funding for the purchase of Larch Hill came from the 3,000 pounds profit the association made from non-Scout fares on the 1934 pilgrimage to Rome, and a 500 pound donation from the Knights of Saint Columbanus.

Larch Hill officially opened as a campsite on June 4, 1938. An outdoor mass was celebrated in the garden area by Fr. Leo Mc Cann C.C., and was attended by over 400 scouts from the Dublin Diocese (which received considerable support around this time from John Charles McQuaid) who were participating in the inaugural camp over the Whit weekend.