The construction of St Columba’s Church known locally as St Colum’s Church commenced in the spring of 1903. This Church located on the Sligo -Ballyfarnon road, is dedicated to Saint Colmchille, one of Ireland’s three Patron Saints, who was responsible for the foundation of the nearby early Christian Church at Dumcolumb.

St. Columba’s church was built at the time when it was felt that the other two Churches of the Parish, namely, Sooey and Riverstown were located some considerable distance away. It took two years to complete the construction of this Church. The first Mass celebrated here was on All Souls Day, 2 nd November, 1905 by Fr. Brian Crehan a native of Galway. Fr. Crehan was the first Curate appointed to Gleann and served in the Parish from 1903 to 1911 and again from 1923 to a1927. A noted Irish scholar, Fr. Crehan was highly regarded in the area for his efforts to improve the lives of his parishioners.

St Columba’s Church was designed in an early Gothic Style by P.J. Kilgallen of Abbey View, Sligo. The windows, buttresses and western gable window surrounds are dressed in cut sandstone and the walls finished in cement plaster. The entrance to the Church is made of a cut limestone entrance porch on the southern side of the church. There are two cut stone crosses over the sanctuary area. The belfry gable and the entrance porch however are both surmounted by Celtic style stone crosses. The belfry cross is 50 feet above the floor of the church. In the Sanctuary area there is a three light stained glass window depicting a Calvary scene which was designed by a Mr Watson from Youghal, Co Cork. The three windows depicting the Calvary scene were gifts to the church from Mrs Ward, Gleann School, Fr. Crehan, and Fr. Cornelius McHugh, a native of the Parish. The woodwork of the oak ceiling is a feature that should be noted. The original Altar has green marble inserts and a granite top. A stained glass side window in the Church depicts the traditional Christian imagery of a pelican piercing its breast with its beak in order to feed its young with its own blood. This window was a gift from James Flanagan, County Councillor of Ballinakill.

During the construction of the church Holy Mass was held in the local Gleann school in order to establish a congregation for the new Church. Whilst use of St. Columba’s for religious ceremony commenced in 1905, it was not dedicated until Sunday, 23 rd June 1907, when the Dedication Ceremony and High Mass were conducted by the Most Rev. Dr. Clancy, Bishop of Elphin. The sermon at this celebration was preached by His Grace, Most Rev. Dr. Healy, Archbishop of Tuam.

Now, St. Columba’s Church has remained largely untouched since it original construction; the only major alterations since then being the Installation of an oil burner central heating system in 1956 (replaced again in 1976), the installation of electricity in 1962 and in later years, a new entrance driveway and a new Altar and Ambo. The Altar and the Ambo were re-modelled by Feely Stone in Boyle from an original Altar taken from the Ursuline Convent Oratory in Sligo. Both are made of white marble with green Connenmara marble inserts. The central alabaster carving depicting the lamb on the Cross was a later addition to the Altar, being added at the time of the installation of the Altar and Ambo in St. Columba’s in 1999.

Due to dwindling congregation numbers in the Gleann area, St. Columba’s Church ceased to be used for religious celebrations in the early part of 2013.