BELFAST MAGAZINE ISSUE
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Belfast Magazine
BELFAST MAGAZINE 5 Churchill Street, Belfast BT15 2BP Tel: 9031 0859 Fax 9035 1326 E-Mail:
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www.glenravel.com The Belfast Magazine is a bi-monthly publication compiled by the Glenravel Local History Project. It is just one of several Glenravel titles which aims to promote an interest in the subject of local history. It has always been claimed that history belongs of the higher classes and looking at the way it has been presented for decades then this would seem to be the case. Glenravel are not interested in the history of lords and earls, their estates and titles, instead we are interested in the history of working class life. We are not interested in politics either and we must stress that if an article appears in the magazine which appears to be a bit one sided then this is due to the simple fact that it is taken from a Nationalist or Unionist newspaper. We use both to try and balance things out. The Glenravel Local History Project is a local historical scheme based in the North Belfast area. It’s activities are centred around the educational promotion and restoration of the areas historic burying ground at Clifton Street and is named after the nearby Glenravel Street which was destroyed to make way for the disastrous Westlink road system. The Belfast Magazine is not funded by any grant making body and is entirely funded by you - the reader. It’s profits are not used for personal gain but for the continuing work of the overall scheme. If you would like to support our work and advertise your business at the same time then feel free to contact our team at the above.
COVER PICTURE The Central Fire Station in 1929. Below - The same view today (November 2010)
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A SPACEMAN, NICKED CIGS AND REBUILDING AFTER THE BLITZ In the last issue we began a series looking and what was going on in Belfast during major world events. We began with Wednesday 12th of April, 1961 when Russia put the first man, Yuri Gagarin (right), into space. Lots was going on locally so we’ll continue with the same period. The age for capital punishment was debated in the House of Commons at Westminster when a group of Labour MPs made a bid to amend the present law of hanging from the age of 18 and have the age increased. The bid to amend the present law was made on the report stage of the Criminal Justice Bill to incorporate in the measure which would have had the
effect of raising the age to 21. One hundred and forty four MPs voted for the change but there were 229 votes against the bill which was rejected. The Home Secretary opposed the age reduction for two reasons. Firstly he stated that there had been a significant increase in crimes of violence by young persons aged between 17-21 and secondly since the introduction of the Homicide Act it was too soon to draw conclusions about the result of its implementation. He went on to state that in England of four persons under 21 convicted of capital murder since the Homicide Act came into operation two had been reprieved, and thus he felt that the law protected those who were
perceived in society as being vulnerable and at risk. Mr Butler, the Home Secretary, declared that the government did not to keep the age of 18 for cruel or brutal reasons but that they believed that it was wrong to think that anyone under the age of 21 was immature, impetuous or were not deterred by hanging or life imprisonment. The
government believed that often those under the age of 21 were ringleaders, and if the age of hanging was raised to 21 it would give some young people the wrong impression of the seriousness and nature of the offence of capital murder. Apart from four MPs in the House of Commons the voting was on correct party lines.
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Belfast Magazine
Thieves steal 7 million Belfast made cigarettes Thieves in England hijacked an articulated lorry carrying tobacco and over 7 million cigarettes belonging to the Gallagher’s Ltd tobacco firm based in Ulster. The total goods stolen were worth about £43,730 and three or four men were involved in the robbery. The men flagged down the driver at the junction of Totteridge Lane and High Road in Whetstone, Middlesex and ambushed the lorry .its intended destination was Holloway, London. They dragged the driver, Mr George Taylor, of Hornsey, from the cab of the lorry, beat him brutally about the head and upper body and then bundled him into their saloon car. One of the thieves then drove off the lorry in one direction and the remaining thieves drove Mr Taylor five miles to Highgate where he was thrown from the car. He was found bleeding and bruised at the side of the road by a passing policeman and he was taken to hospital for treatment. The lorry was taking the normal transportation route from Gallagher’s, Belfast by ferry to Preston and then driven by road to London when it was hijacked.
New College of Art Construction Work on the foundations and piling of the new Belfast College of Art began with tenders for the erection of the structure scheduled to be issued later in the year. The five storey building was planned on the blitz site at York Street near the junction
of Donegall Street and was estimated to cost in the region of £500,000. Since the area was destroyed by German aerial bombing in 1941 it had been proposed that the site would become the home for the college. Since it was cleared the site had been used
as a car park by the British Legion and the loss of car space, some 250 spaces, there were concerns that there would be insufficient parking in the area. A new car was proposed in Kent Street to take the strain off the Legions other city centre car parks.
Sammy "the Belfast picketer” dies Mr Samuel Watson of Abingdon Street in Belfast, a well known and avid supporter of trade unionism died. "Sammy" as he was known had been a picket during the Belfast Carters strike in 1907 and came to the attention of the authorities for his activism. He was a lifelong admirer of "Big" Jim Larkin who led the strike and Mr Watson was a member of the Carters Branch of the AT and GWU for almost 60 years. A tribute to him was issued from the
Amalgamated Transport and General Workers Union: "Through the death of Mr Samuel Wilson a link has been severed with the struggle for trade union recognition in the early years of this century. Although retired from work for a number of years he took a keen interest in trade union affairs and until his illness a few weeks ago was a regular caller at Transport House". Facing pages shows pictures from the Belfast carters strike in which Sammy was a picket
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The image above shows troops lined up at the junction of York Street and Great Patrick Street. The building with the spire in the background is the old Poorhouse which is today's Clifton House. The photograph below shows the junction of York Street and Great George's Street
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Belfast Magazine
KELLS Co. Meath
ells (Irish: Ceanannas, meaning "Great Chief Abode") is a town in County Meath in Ireland. The town lies off the M3 motorway, 16 km (10 mi) from Navan and 65 km (40 mi) from Dublin. In recent years the town has expanded considerably with many Dublin commuters moving to the town. Until the opening of the new motorway in June 2010, Kells stood as a busy junction town on the old N3 road with over 18,000 vehicles passing through the town each day. Kells was a renowned traffic bottleneck from both the N3 national primary route (Dublin, Cavan, Enniskillen and Ballyshannon) and N52 national secondary route
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(Dundalk, Tullamore and Nenagh) passing though the town centre. The new M3 motorway significantly reduces the journey time to Dublin, as well as the numbers of vehicles in the town. The name Kells derives from Kenlis, an anglicisation of the Irish language word 'Ceann Lios'. Ceann Lios, meaning "head fort" appears to be another form of the name Ceannanas
M贸r. Kells, Kenlis and Headfort all feature in the titles taken by the Taylor family, and all contribute to local place names. The monastery at Kells is thought to have been founded around 804 A.D. by monks fleeing from St Colmcille's Iona monastery to escape Viking invasions. In 1152, the Synod of Kells completed the transition of the Roman Catholic Church of Ireland from a monastic
Belfast Magazine
church to the diocesan church that continues today. While called the Synod of Kells, this important Synod was transferred to Mellifont, Co Louth, and held there in March 1152. Kells was raised to a Diocese by the Synod, but was later reduced to parochial status. At the end of the 12th century Hugh de Lacy was granted the whole of Meath and under the Normans the religious establishments at Kells flourished.
Kells became a border town garrison of the Pale and was the scene of many battles, between BrĂŠifne
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Irish and HibernoNormans, both of whom had heavily intermarried. Since the Tudor from 1561 to 1800 Kells returned two Members of Parliament. During the rebellion of 1641, Kells was burned by the O'Reilly's during their attacks on the pale. The period of the Irish Potato Famine saw the population of Kells drop by 38% as measured by the civil census records of 1841 and 1851. The Workhouse and the Fever Hospital were described as full to overflowing. The Abbey of Kells, with its round tower, is associated with St Colmcille (also known as Columba) and with the
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Book of Kells, now kept at Trinity College Dublin. The round tower and five large Celtic crosses can still be viewed today. Four of the crosses are in the churchyard of St Columba's church. The other Celtic cross was positioned in the middle of a busy crossroads until an unfortunate accident involving a cumbersome school bus. It now stands in front of a former courthouse. A roof protects the cross from the elements. Curiously, a replica is completely safe from the elements inside the museum.
The Round Tower is the instantly recognisable landmark of Kells. It was built in the tenth century and stands ninety feet high, from the original street level to the base of its roof. It was built as part of the local defences against the Vikings and was used both as a lookout tower, and, being fireproof like Columba's House, as a place of refuge during attack. Kells' round tower has six floors with no staircase, so that access was made more difficult for invaders, the only access being from one floor to the next by ladder. Each floor has only one window but the top is unusual, in that; unlike most round towers which have only four; this tower has five windows, that look out over the five ancient roads leading into the town; thereby assisting the lookouts in their job, by making it easier for them to be able to see people approaching Kells.
Close by the graveyard of St. Columba's church stands a small stone roofed Oratory (St. Colmcille's House). This probably dates from the 11th century. Access to the monks' sleeping accommodation aloft is by ladder. This small rectangular building is positioned at one of the highest points in the town. The Oratory is kept locked, but visitor access can be arranged. Just outside the town of Kells on the road to
Belfast Magazine
Oldcastle is the hill of Lloyd, named after Thomas Lloyd of Enniskillen, who camped a large Williamite army here during the wars of 1688-91 against the Jacobites. Here also stands an interesting towering building called the Tower of Lloyd, which is an 18th century lighthouse folly in the form of a giant Doric column, surmounted by glazed lantern, erected to the memory of Thomas Taylor, 1st Earl of Bective, by his son. The tower is around 30 m (100 ft) high. From the top one can see magnificent views of the surrounding countryside as far as the Mourne mountains in County Down, Northern Ireland on a clear day. The tower was used to view horse racing and the hunt in the
nineteenth century. The plaque on the tower reads: 'This pillar was designed by Henry Aaron Baker Esq. architect was executed by Mr. Joseph Beck stone cutter Mr. Owen Mc Cabe head mason Mr. Bartle Reilly overseer Anno 1791'. The area around the tower has been developed as a community park (The People's Park), and
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includes the Paupers' Grave. This cemetery was a necessity in the times of great poverty in the country. Mass is still celebrated there annually and the cemetery is a grim reminder of the Workhouse and extreme poverty engendered by changes in farming practice in the 19th century and during the Famine.
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Belfast Magazine
For those with a love of old crime stories and even of local history there is no better past time than flicking through the old Belfast police Reports. Most are of the usual types of offence but sometimes the odd piece shows up such as this. Artificial respiration was successfully given to a smoke asphyxiated goat after a Belfast fire in February 1930. This unusual feat was part of the "errand of mercy" of two Belfast policemen, Hillard McMullan and Frank Annett of Shankill Road Barracks who rescued six horses and the goat from the burning stables at 54 Emerson Street in the city. The fire had broken out in the hayloft over the stables and the constables had broken down the doors and freed the horses that were in a frenzy. Both policemen suffered burns during the rescue when their clothes became ignited by smouldering wisps of hay. The policemen continued in their rescue through thick choking smoke to find the goat that was lying in an obscure corner in a state of suffocation. They dragged it to a place of safety and attempted to revive it, spending over twenty minutes before it began to breath on its own again. Engines from Ardoyne, Shankill and Central Stations attended the scene and it took almost two hours before the blaze was under control. There was little damage to the structure of the building other than slates wrested off by the firemen but a large quantity of hay, through becoming smoke tainted, was rendered useless. The Belfast Coroner investigated the strange circumstances around the deaths of John Collins, aged 50, who lived at a lodging house in Hamilton Street and Francis Laverty, aged 46, of the same address, both of whom died on the 5th January 1930. James Fox, aged 75, also resided at the same house and at his inquest John Collins was to be called to give evidence. Mr Collins died on the day of the inquest into the death of James Fox. Francis Laverty had had a stroke and died in the Union Infirmary on the same day. The coroner stated that the news of the three deaths for the same house in the same week had seemed alarming and very peculiar. However evidence given by Dr Thomson, Chief Medial Officer of Health for Belfast, that he had visited the house and found everything in perfect order as accepted by the court. He was satisfied that there was nothing wrong with the house. Collins had been found dead on his bed and he was partially clothed; it appeared that he had taken a weak turn when stooping to untie his bootlaces. Medical evidence was given that death was due to pneumonia and heart failure. In the death of Francis Laverty the facts were that when he took ill arrangements were made for his removal to the Union Infirmary. Local police were informed of his illness and when the police went to the house they found Laverty so ill that they gave instruction for his removal to hospital. He died there the same day and medical evidence showed that death was due to cerebral haemorrhage following apoplexy. There were no external head injuries. In the Belfast Custody Court on April 26th 1930 was Sarah Boyd, of Ballygobbin, Ballymoney, who was committed to Thorndale House for three months on a charge of stealing a purse containing four guineas from Elizabeth McKenzie of the Ormeau Road in Belfast. Elizabeth McKenzie told the court that the girl had come to her house stating the she had been put out of her home in Holywood. She took the girl in and gave her supper and a bed. She also had
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breakfast and dinner the next day. Then Mrs McKenzie found that her purse, containing four guineas and some papers was missing. In a confession to the police Miss Boyd stated that she had stopped in the house of Mrs McKenzie, and had lifted her purse while Mrs McKenzie was eating and then made her escape through the back door. She told the court that she had sent 25s to her mother and had spent the remainder. Patrick Tohill of Lissan in County Derry was charged at a special Licensing court in Magherafelt with having poteen, two stills and a quantity of wash, also a rifle and shotgun in his possession without having a firearms certificate. The police visited Tohills house in May 1930 and found there the poteen and equipment associated with making the illegal alcohol. Tohill was in bed at the time of the raid and when arrested and charged he made no statement. Before appearing in court Tohill who was 38 and lived alone on a small mountain farm pleaded guilty. His legal counsel stated that poverty was the driving force that had made Tohill embark on the illicit practice in the hope of earning some extra money. Although the local magistrate had some sympathy with Mr Tohill the court had no choice but to sentence him to seven months imprisonment with hard labour in each of the two stilling charges, both sentences to run concurrently. The charges involving the gun charges were also included in the seven-month sentence. Mr Mary Macken was before the Petty Sessions in Warrenpoint for failing to provide a fireguard in her house, as result of which her child, Margaret aged almost 6 was accidentally burned and died the next day. At the time of the accident Mrs Mackens husband was away form home as he was a fever contact case, and had lost his father, mother, three brothers and a sister inside a week. Margaret Macken died from the injuries she sustained in the burning and at the time it happened Mrs Macken had left the kitchen for a minute to feed the hens. The Macken family were in poor circumstances and Mrs Macken was given probation.
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A tram pictured in College Square East in 1953. The old Mayfair Cinema can be seen to the left
A tram pictured in Donegall Square North in the late 1940’s. The building to the left is the old Water Office which is now part of the Marks & Spencer Department Store
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A Fleetline bus pictured in Donegall Square East in 1973 on the Royal Victoria Hospital service
Donegall Square North on the 10th of August 1963. A Daimler bus passes a Guy Trolleybus on its way to East Belfast
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Belfast Magazine
Double attempted murder and suicide
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ne of the most terrible tragedies that have ever occurred in Belfast took place in October 1894 in Ballymacarrett. The shocking event was the chief topic of conversation in the city for a long time to come. A few minutes before 11 o’clock on a Monday night the people in the area of St Pancras Street and St Sebastian Street were startled by the sounds of a firearm being discharged. The area was generally quiet and this was something that they would not have been used to. Cecilia Devlin of 48 St Pancreas Street was walking along the street in the company of William Kenny of Comber Street. Cecilia was carrying a bottle of stout in one hand and a bottle of whisky in the other. The couple were in good spirits and had obviously had a few drinks. As they walked along the street they met Maria Brown who lived close by and stopped to have a drink. They offered Maria a drink of stout but she refused but accepted a slug of whisky. The group were standing having a chat when William Conroy who had been walking about in the area looking for Cecilia approached them. He had called at her house on several occasions during the evening looking for her and had called at the local pubs to try and find her.
opposite direction and Conroy turned round and fired one shot at him, Kenny diving through the window of a derelict house to avoid the shot. He escaped and ran off. William Conroy then turned the gun back on to Cecilia who seemed surprised and unsure about what was going on. He fired at her at point blank range, shooting her in the chest once. Cecilia stumbled backwards and fell down, apparently dead. Maria Brown was frozen where she stood with fear and Conroy shouted at her to stop looking at him and then turned the gun on her, firing, but the gun misfired. Conroy then walked to other side of the street, but the gun in his mouth and discharged the revolver, killing himself instantly.
Neighbours ran out of their houses to find out what was going on, at first thinking that fireworks were going off, and instead found a ghastly scene in the road. Maria Brown ran off to get a doctor and Cecilia was quickly brought to hospital where she underwent surgery immediately and although was unconscious and extremely ill, the bullet had travelled through her body and had missed vital organs. Although she had lost a great deal of blood she survived the shooting. William He went to speak to Cecilia who offered him a Kenny escaped uninjured. drink but as she passed him the bottle of whisky she smashed the bottle to the ground. When The body of Conroy lay dead in the street for he asked her why she had done this she replied many hours while the police began their that she just felt like it. Conroy became agitated investigation. There was blood all over the and when Cecilia refused to go with him he street and Conroy’s body was eventually pulled out a revolver and pointed it at her. covered as a great many people from all over William Kenny realising that things were going Belfast travelled to St. Pancras Street to view very badly took to his heels and ran off in the the scene.
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At the inquest into the death of Conroy it came out that Conroy and Cecilia had been involved in what Conroy thought was a serious relationship. Conroy was from Downpatrick but had moved to Foundry Street and worked as a scraper at Queens Island where he earned good wages. He also had an inheritance from his grandfather and was a man of means. Since moving to Belfast he had taken up with Cecilia who was well known as a drinker and had taken to drinking in pubs and clubs around Belfast with her. Cecilia however did not think of Conroy as a suitor, in fact she had no interest in a serious relationship and just enjoyed a good time with Conroy, knowing that he had the means to pay for her entertainment. When Conroy found out that Cecelia was seeing other men, and in particular William Kenny, he was consumed with jealousy and could not contain his these feelings. On the day of the tragedy Conroy and Cecilia
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were drinking in the local pub early in the day and when she left him Conroy continued drinking, thinking about where Cecilia was until he could take it no more. He went home and collected his revolver, which he had brought to Belfast from Downpatrick and set off to find her. When he saw her with Kenny he lost control of his feelings. At the inquest the coroner noted that although there were very few cases like this one in the city that out of the seventeen inquests he had held in the last month sixteen of the deaths had been caused in some part by the taking of alcohol. The jury after consultation returned a verdict "that William Conroy, on the 15th of October 1894, in St Pancras Street, in the city of Belfast, committed suicide by shooting himself in the head through the mouth with a revolver bullet". Cecilia Devlin made a complete recovery.
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Case of alleged manslaughter uring the nineteenth century there were many deaths associated with the Belfast dock area and the shipping industry throughout Ireland. The Irish coastal waters claimed many lives due to the unpredictable waters however most of the accidents occurred in the shipyards or at port. Accidents on board the ships while in the Lough were more unusual and this account of a tragic death while in the safe waters of Belfast Lough is just one example.
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Two men, John Horn and Edward Damekin, captain and mate of the Norwegian barque Energie, were brought up on remand at the Belfast Police Court charged with having feloniously killed John Heron on board the schooner Princess Victoria. The barque Energie was built in 1860 in the world famous ship building city of Bremen where it remained until 1867 when it was sold to France and then in the 1870s it was sold on to Norway. The barque was laden with grain and came into collision with the schooner Princess Victoria in Belfast Lough. The Princess Victoria was bound for Troon in Scotland when the accident occurred at a point in the Lough opposite the Copeland Islands known as Graypoint. Graypoint was a well known fort battery situated near Bangor at the mouth of Belfast Lough. It was the 6th of August 1872 and the water was calm and the visibility was excellent when the Energie, which had been sailing in the wake of the Princess Victoria all day,
struck the Princess Victoria, carrying away her main boom. The broken part of the spar came away and fell on the head of John Heron from Donaghadee. Heron was at the wheel of the Princess Victoria and was a well known sailor in and around the Belfast Docks. Such was the force at which the mast struck his head that John Heron was killed instantly. The captain of the Princess Victoria did not see any person on board the barque Energie until the moment before the accident when the mate and one of the seamen came running up on to the short raised deck at the fore end of the vessel where the crew quarters where. No one on board the Princess Victoria could have anticipated that
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the spar would strike Heron with such force halt to the proceedings. He stated that much and no actions they could have taken would of the evidence was inaccurate and technical and that neither side were able to explain to have prevented his death. the court exactly what had happened and no When John Horn and Edward Damekin were firm eyewitness account of the incident was brought to court their defence lawyer applied available to the court. He continued in his to have a similar charge entered against summing up that he believed that the Crown William Hunter who was the pilot in charge had failed to establish a sufficient case of of the Energie at the time of the occurrence. criminal negligence on the part of the The magistrate of the Police Court, Mr prisoners to warrant him in sending them for O’Donnell, granted the application and trial for the charge of having feloniously William Hunter was accordingly placed in killed John Heron. the dock beside the other two men. The prisoners were therefore accordingly Evidence was given in court which discharged and were free to continue their confirmed much of what we already know. positions with the Princess Victoria. John The Energie was following the Princess Heron however did not receive justice. No Victoria on route to Troon but witnesses were one was ever convicted of causing his death brought forward which proved that the pilot and no company was held responsible for was in command of the barque Energie at this loss to his family. The name Princess the time of the collision. Edward Damekin Victoria had now become associated with the was on watch at the time and when the ill-fated passenger ferry which foundered in Energie was within 50 metres of the Princess heavy seas off the Irish coast on the 31st Victoria the mate swung out so much so that January 1953. 133 people were killed, 27 the helm of the barque was ported. This of them from Larne. Only 44 were rescued sharp movement had the affect of changing as this ship sunk off the Copeland Islands at the course of the Energie, so much so that the mouth of Belfast Lough, at much the that she run another quarter of a point the same point where James Heron lost his life on the schooner Princess Victoria. collision would not have occurred. Conflicting evidence was brought to the court by the defence and the prosecution so At the inquest into the death of James Heron much so that the sitting magistrate called a a verdict of accidental death was returned.
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The Municipal College of Technology in 1929
The flax preparing and spinning room at the Municipal College of Technology in 1929
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The mechanical engineering room at the Municipal College of Technology in 1929
A section of Belfast city centre in 1929 showing (1) the City Hall and (2) the Municipal College of Technology
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Belfast Magazine
OLD BELFAST NEWSPAPER REPORTS Lough Neagh Air Tragedy Elaine Hogg
prolific goal scorer and player in Inter P r o v i n c i a l competitions. For some time he had been the captain of his club and on many occasions was called upon by the Ulster senior selectors for trials. His father William Hannan had a miraculous escape as he noticed the plane falling and he lay flat in the James Hannan or boat and as a result was Jimmy Hannan as he uninjured. known was one of the best known hockey The pilot of the plane, forwards in Ulster. He Flying Officer William of 504 was a member of the Sharpe, Antrim Hockey Club, a squadron, was rescued n the 18th May 1931 a tragic and bizarre incident took place on Lough Neagh, as a result of which a local man, Mr James Hannan was killed by an aeroplane from Aldergrove. The plane fell into the water and struck the boat in which Mr Hannan and his father were fishing.
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by another boat and in July of that year was charged at a court martial of "manoeuvring an aircraft in a manner likely to cause an accident".
The eye witness accounts of what happened that day in May are shocking; the evidence and statements at the court martial give us a fascinating glimpse into air force training and procedures in the early days of the RAF.
Thomas Wallace and William Hannan, cousins of the dead man, were fishing in a boat some distance away and when they noticed the airplane falling they rowed quickly to the scene. William Hannan was extensively interviewed by local reporters after the accident and it was his graphic description of the affair which gripped the general public of the time. He explained that fishermen on the Lough were well used to airplanes flying over the Lough on training exercises and on that
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provide any help to Jimmy and his father. When he got close to the boat they saw that Jimmy was lying in his father’s arms and his father was holding him up, he was too weak to move. They were going to transfer Jimmy onto their boat to go ashore but he was so badly injured that they decided to take him to shore in his own boat which had lost its oars during the crash. They transferred the oars from their boat and then made their way to pick up the pilot who had managed to evacuate his plane and was holding onto the partially submerged aircraft. fateful day in May he saw two airplanes coming from the direction of Aldergrove. The planes travelled towards Shanes Castle but within 15 minutes one of the planes returned and passed by Wallace and William Hannan at a height of 25 ft and a distance from their boat of only 20 yards. At this time they were 200 yards from Jimmy Hanna and his father. Wallace remarked at the time to
his cousin, "She’s going to hit the Hannan’s boat" and both men turned around to watch the plane. Suddenly Hannan saw the airplane give a circular swing and then somersault towards the water, hitting his cousin’s boat with a crash, a deafening sound. William Hannan then explained how he threw his nets overboard and rushed to see if he could
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When all were on board the small boat they made their way to the shore as fast as they could but Jimmy Hannon died from his injuries within minutes of landing. He was attended to by a local doctor who pronounced him dead and arranged for his body to be taken to the local hospital where an inquest was held. The damaged boat was secured at the mouth of the Sixmilewater for examination by the RAF and local investigators. The mast of the boat lay in the boat, broken in three places. One of the oars was smashed and part of it was missing. The iron on both sides of the boat had been pulled off by the impact. The boat drew large crowds of local people who came to have a look at the impact damage and the area in which this famous tragedy took place. The accident took place quite close to the shore in the part of the Lough known locally as the Cattle Bottom. It was also close to the area where the police used for rifle practice and also to a
local golf course, police officers and golfers all witnessed the terrible event. People from the town of Antrim reported that they had seen the plane earlier in the day at a low altitude, and one resident stated that it was not much above the chimneys of the houses and shops in the Main Street when he saw it. The airplane, a two seater Horsley light bomber ,was guarded by the military as it lay overturned in the water, no one was allowed to go anywhere near it. The pilot, Sharpe, was based at Hucknall in Nottinghamshire and was at Aldergrove to attend a course of firing and bombing exercise
and was flying over the Lough at the time in preparation to carrying these out. Exactly what the pilot was doing flying so low over the Lough would become apparent at the court martial. It was revealed during the court martial proceedings that the pilot was only 24 years old and had been flying for 9 months. He had 90 hours flying experience in Horsley’s, the type of machine he was flying on the day of the accident, and 100 hours of other flying experience. He confirmed to the court that his plane was flying normally that day and he was only in the plane
on his own as his gunner had not got the ammunition ready for loading so he had decided to take the plane out for a warm up run before returning to the air field to collect his gunner and ammunition. Flying Officer Sharpe gave his account of the fateful flight over Lough Neagh, he was the only witness called at his court martial. He described that on the way back from Shane’s Castle he climbed to 500 ft as he was looking for targets for some diving practice. He cut across the corner of Antrim Bay and dived at some small corks in the water far below. He
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looked around before he dived and saw only one boat on the Lough, on his left hand side. He claimed to have been flying at 50ft as he passed the corks, not the 20ft that the other witnesses claimed. He admitted that he had not really thought much about what distance he should keep between his plane and the water as he had no experience of flying over water; in fact it was the first time he had flown over a stretch of water. He realised that he had misjudged the height of the dive only when he saw the boat below him and he tried to ease the plane to the right but the engine stalled and he hit the water, the wheel of his aircraft hitting the boat as it collided with the water. It was put to him that he had told the
fishermen after the incident that this type of accident was an every day occurrence for the RAF but he denied this emphatically and suggested that it was the locals who had a lapse of memory, as far as he was concerned an accident such as his was rare and he would never have been so flippant and insensitive as to say something like that. The purpose of his flight was to test the engine and practice a few dives using only observation and not the altimeter, he was on duty and undertaking orders. The prosecutor was astonished by the answers which were being given by Sharpe to his questions. Sharpe admitted to diving at 4" corks, bobbing in the
water which he spotted from 500 ft but was unable to see at boat which was 15ft long, only spotting it when he was 4ft from the water. When pushed by the prosecutor to answer his questions more fully Sharpe confessed that he was concentrating on the cork so intently that this caused him to misjudge his height from them. He described how he was undertaking ‘splash’ practice and that he had not been instructed to keep at 50 ft from the water, he was unaware that any lower was dangerous and would disturb the fishing on the Lough. It was obvious that Sharpe had no idea how the Lough was used and had assumed that it was a piece of water used only by the RAF. Most damming was his confession to not looking around him properly to ensure that there was no one on the water, his excuse was a blind spot in the flight deck and that he was in a rush to get back to the airfield. He had hit the water at up to 130mph, was lucky to be alive, but appeared in court to not have really
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understood the gravity of what he had done. The dive made by Sharpe was unnecessary and should never have been performed but was he negligent? His Counsel commented on the fact that the civilian witnesses were not experienced at judging aircraft distances and such their evidence was open to suspicion. He contended that his client had used poor judgment but that did not constitute negligence; he was inexperienced not negligent. Sharpe had brought disgrace on the Air Force in Ulster which had before this incident had an impeccable reputation and good relations with the locals. Sharpe, in the line of duty, had been involved in an accident in which a civilian had died, he had suffered enough through his lack of common sense and bad decision making. It was if the military had closed ranks, the locals were outraged, and Flying Officer Sharpe was found not guilty, and acquitted of all charges.
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Belfast Magazine
The Holywood Arches, spanning the Holywood and Newtownards Roads hours before they were demolished in 1957
A new Masonic Hall in course of erection on the Newtownards Road in 1957
Belfast Magazine
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Horses and ponies from Bertram Mills circus passing along Garmoyle Street to advertise that they are in town in 1957. In the background McMahon’s Bar can be seen at the corner
Murders, Ghosts and Bodysnatchers THE DARKER SIDE OF BELFAST’S HISTORY See back cover for details
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Belfast Magazine
Section of the 1791 map of Belfast. The square section to the centre right marked White Linen Hall is the exact site of the present City Hall
Looking down High Street in 1780. The entrance to Cornmarket can be seen to the right. The old Market House at its entrance is where the United Irishmen leader Henry Joy McCracken was hanged in 1798
Belfast Magazine
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August 1977
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Belfast Magazine
Monday 1st August 1977 Two men were held by the army when they were picked up by soldiers in the Clogher area. It was claimed that they were high on the wanted list. The men from Dungannon and Pomeroy were held at the Castlereagh holding centre in Belfast. One of the men alleged he was ill treated and a subsequent medical
report suggested that both men had been ill treated while in custody. A Belfast teenager was charged with having a gun and bullets at his home in Ophir Gardens in the Cavehill Road area. He was accused of having a 45 revolver and 8 rounds of ammunition under s u s p i c i o u s circumstances.
Two Belfast men were charged of having guns and ammunition in the city. One, a 19 year old postman from Monagh Parade and a 21 year old labourer from Norglen Parade were accused of having a Chinese assault rifle and 13 rounds of ammunition with intent.
army dealt with a suspect car in the New Lodge Road. The army sent in a robot to check out the vehicle and one of the shots ricocheted, hitting the boy in the leg. 100 shots were fired by Royal Marines when returning the fire of gunmen on the opposite side of Carlingford Lough near Greenore. The A seven year old boy gunmen fired at a was shot while the marine launch in the Lough. No hits were claimed. The army defused a 40lb milk churn bomb near Augher, south Tyrone. It had been hidden under a pile of stones. A cache of UVF rifles, shipped to Larne on the Clyde Valley gun running ship in 1921 were found in a derelict house in the Tiger Bay area of Belfast. Police treated it as a ‘museum find’ as the guns worked but bullets to fit them were hard to find. The German made
Belfast Magazine
rifles, 29 Steyr and one Martini Henry, were found in the roof space of a house in Brougham Street. Seven bayonets were
also found. The guns were still coated with grease to maintain their firing condition. The guns were part of a huge shipment
which the UVF smuggled into Ulster form Germany in the fight to resist Home Rule. About 20,000 guns were brought in
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by the Clyde Valley and the house where the guns were found was once used as a meeting spot for Duncairn Unionists.
Tuesday 2nd August 1977 A .45 revolver and 155 rounds of ammunition were found by security
forces in a derelict house in Dromara Street in the Ormeau area of Belfast.
Wednesday 3rd August 1977 Two gunmen fired 10 shots into the front room of a businessman’s house in north Belfast. No one was injured in the attack on the house in Donegall Park Avenue. A member of the family raised the alarm shortly
before the attack and the rest of the family got to safety. The two gunmen fired from the driveway only feet away from the house. They escaped in a car which had been hijacked in the Westland area of the Cavehill Road.
Thursday 4th August 1977 Mr John McCartan of Crieve Walk, Andersonstown, died when he was shot in cross fire between the army and gunmen. Mr McCartan was hit after leaving Andersonstown social club. According to the police a shot was fired at an army patrol and one shot was returned. Mr McCartan
was known as ‘Fingers’ or ‘Jack’ and he had been hit in the back. Soldiers were stoned by a gang of youth in the Turf Lodge area. Three plastic bullets were fired by the army during the incident. Soldiers were carrying out an identity check outside a club at the time.
Gilpins Store in Sandy Row after being destroyed in an IRA firebomb attack
Friday 5th August 1977 There were nearly 20 fire bomb attacks in the Lisburn and Belfast areas. Six shops in Lisburn were hit. There were fires at two Belfast garages, a city centre
office block in Royal Avenue, two factory warehouses at Upper Dunmurry Lane, another one in Belfast; six derelict houses in Louisa Street; two shops in
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Belfast Magazine
Sandy Row; the Blackstaff Mill in the Springfield Road and a disused security post at Ligoneil. At one stage 24 fire engines were tackling blazes and four firemen were injured. Incendiary devices and petrol were used in nearly all the attacks, but it was a 5lb bomb wrapped to a can of petrol which destroyed the office block and Charles Fashions at the corner of Royal Avenue and North Street in Belfast. The Irish Press offices were damaged in this attack. All 11 fire engines from Belfast and six from Glengormley, Castlereagh and Holywood fought the city fires. This is how the attacks were logged by the RUC: 11pm Kilwee Industrial and a furniture suppliers warehouse on fire. A security man spotted smoke and during the fight to contain the blaze two unexploded incendiaries were
The burnt out remains of Charles Fashion Shop in Royal Avenue following an IRA firebomb attack
found. Considerable damage caused. 11.05 Two petrol bombs thrown at the rear of a Co-op in Deanby Gardens, Oldpark. One exploded on the window sill. Slight fire and no injuries. 11.15 Lisburn, the worst area hit. Five incendiaries in Bow Street and one in Market Square. The Spinning Mill was destroyed. Damage to Woodside’s in Market Square was extensive and a hardware shop beside it slight. Junction boutique damaged as well, but damage to West End Sports, McMahons drapery shop and Chitticks
was slight. 11.28 Brush and Cowan’s garage at Rosapenna Street, Belfast was burned out. 11.42 Six derelict houses at Louisa Street ablaze after petrol was sprinkled 11.45 Charles Fashions in Royal Avenue on fire after a bomb in a plastic bag was planted. Extensive damage caused and slight damage to Burtons beside it. Scott’s draper shop in Sandy Row hit with slight damage on the first floor. A second incendiary device found here. 11.55 A disused security post at the
Mill on the Ligoneil Road was damaged after petrol was sprinkled over it. 12.05 An exploding incendiary at Gilpins in Sandy Row caused the fire which wrecked the store. 12.15 On the Springfield Road at Blackstaff Mill, a fire was put out by the s p r i n k l e r extinguishing system. It had started with an exploding incendiary in a clothes rack. A garage at Cliftonville Street was damaged by fire after petrol was sprinkled. 12.30 Hall and Hoys furniture warehouse at Manor Street, Belfast had two petrol bombs hurled
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was closed because of a suspect bomb under a bridge at Blacks Road. Trains were also halted after a suspect bomb was discovered at Finaghy.
A fireman damps down the smouldering rubble of Woodsides Store in Lisburn following an IRA firebomb attack
through a window. Police opened fire on a group of men who ran away from a car after it crashed near Durham Street, Belfast. Two men were hit.
one in a post office held at gunpoint van and the other in a while the van with a red Ford Transit. suspect bomb was left at the junction. At Carlisle Circus scores of people were Bomb scares caused evacuated after the traffic chaos in the driver of an ice cream Short Strand and van abandoned his Newtownards Road At Millfield in Belfast vehicle shouting that areas and the M1 the army dealt with there was a bomb on motorway between two suspect bombs, board. His helper was Lisburn and Belfast
There was a bomb blast at a house in Larne. Severe structural damage was caused to the back of the house at Craigyhill. The blast from the device could be heard up to a mile away. No one was hurt. In Ballynahinch five lbs of gelignite was found in a house about to be knocked down at Burren Road.
Saturday 6th August 1977 Monday 8th August 1977 The army checked two suspect vehicles in Belfast. The M1 was sealed off as they examined a bread van abandoned at the Donegall Road end. The motorway was closed between Donegall Road and Stockman’s Lane and traffic was diverted.
The other suspect vehicle, also a bread van, was left in West Street in the Smithfield area. Eight shots were fired at the Fort Monagh army post in Belfast but nobody was injured and soldiers in the base did not return fire.
A man was shot in the Andersonstown area of Belfast. The shooting happened in the Monagh Parade district and the injured man was rushed to the RVH.
Estate, Derry. The weapons were uncovered in a follow-up operation after a shooting in the city in which two soldiers were injured. The rifles were found in a house at Fanad Soldiers found two Drive. powered rifles in a Six people were house in the Creggan injured after an
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Belfast Magazine
explosion at the Slieve Donard Hotel in Newcastle. The local telephone exchange was warned of the bomb but there was not enough time to clear the area and the bomb exploded two minutes after the warning. A fierce fire broke out and the
kitchen side of the hotel was the worst damaged section. A fire bomb was found in a shop in Newcastle’s Railway Street. The army dealt with it. Cromies hardware shop at Hilltown in Newry was destroyed by an incendiary
Tuesday 9th August 1977 A small bomb exploded in the grounds of the New University of Ulster at Coleraine. The bomb went off in a small botanical garden on the Portstewart Road side of the complex.
the Moyard Army post with bullets.
16 year old Paul McWilliams from Springhill Avenue in west Belfast was shot by the army as he tried to get through a hole in a fence while going to shops. The A soldier from the army stated that he light infantry died had been throwing when a gunman raked petrol bombs at
attack. Rioting flared during a Sinn Fein rally in Belfast after a gunman opened fire on a nearby RUC and army post. The gunman fired seven automatic shots at the Springfield Road post as several thousand people attended the
rally at Dunville Park in support of political status for Republican prisoners. The gunman escaped in a waiting car. A sentry returned fire with one shot but did not claim any hits. Soldiers arrested three people after firing plastic bullets at the rioters.
Corry’s timber yard and was shot by members of an eight man patrol after ignoring warnings to stop. Paul McWilliams was a member of the Fianna
and had escaped from a training school where he had been serving a sentence for riotous behaviour. The RUC were fired at in Twinbrook, New
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Wednesday 10th August 1977 In Belfast a foot patrol came under fire near Celtic Park and another patrol was fired on at the Donegall Road roundabout.
Barnsley and Springfield Road police stations and a couple of petrol bombs were lobbed in front of a land rover on the Antrim Road. There were no injuries Shots were heard in Butler Street, Ardoyne and Lower Shankill areas.
In Derry gunmen fired at the Creggan army post and Rosemount police station. An army working party was Two guns along with also fired on in a quantity of Lurgan but no one ammunition were was hurt. found by a joint Army/RUC search In Derry a 2lb bomb team in a derelict exploded at Desmond house at Kilycoppie, Motors at Strand outside Armagh. The Road causing weapons were extensive damage to uncovered in a follow the front and to petrol up search after the pumps. A second ammunition had been device went off at the discovered. cattle market in Brandywell and shattered some windows in houses in the district. A small bomb at a discount warehouse in Strand Road was defused. The army dealt with a suspect package which was left in the Altmore Hotel near
Pomeroy by two armed men. A petrol bomb thrown into the bus depot at Brownlow Terrace in Lurgan and one bus was damaged. Private Lewis John Harrison aged 20 from Streethouse in Wales was shot dead in west Belfast. At the time he was guarding an army bomb disposal team examining a suspect device outside New Barnsley RUC station on the Sringfield Road. He was killed by a single shot from an armalite rifle which struck him in the chest. The IRA made a statement that he had been killed in retaliation for the killing of Fianna member Paul McWilliams and also linked the killing to the visit of the Queen to Belfast. The statement declared that ‘this weeks events have been the direct responsibility
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Belfast Magazine
of Queen Elizabeth. exploded harmlessly She is engaged in and two others were brinkmanship with defused. this intended visit’. Three small sticks of Incendiary devices gelignite were found were found in a carpet in a search at Crumlin warehouse in Library Road prison in Street, Belfast. One Belfast. The
explosives along with four lengths of fuse wire were found in a mattress in C wing, occupied by remand prisoners.
Crossmaglen 200 yards from the army base. No one was hurt but two men near the explosion had a narrow escape. Soldiers cordoned off A car bomb exploded the area as the car in the centre of burned itself out.
Funeral of IRA member Paul McWilliams
Thursday 11th August 1977 A bomb exploded at a petrol filing station in west Belfast starting a fire which damaged an adjoining shop and tyre store. The blast occurred at the Jet filling station on the Stewartstown Road. No one was injured but one man was treated for shock.
Train services between Belfast and Dublin were disrupted because of a bomb scare on the line. A 38 year old army major was shot in the chest by a sniper. The army major was shot when he was supervising the removal of a burnt out
vehicle at the Fall Road. He served with the First Battalion of the Gordon Highlanders. Three shots were fired.
six shots were fired at him and he ran into a flat. Shortly afterwards another man in different clothes emerged with the same type of weapon and he was fired on. He as seen to stagger as he ran off.
The army fired on a sniper at Divis Flats and claimed a hit. A soldier on duty in an observation post spotted a man with an Two high velocity armalite rifle coming shots were fired at the along a corridor and army at Donegall
Belfast Magazine
Road in Belfast and two more at a patrol in Rodney Parade. An army patrol at Oliver Plunkett School on the Glen Road was stoned by youths and one of them was detained by the soldiers. The army blew up a hijacked car at Glen Road but it was found to contain no explosives. In Derry troops came under fire in separate sniper attacks. Five shots were fired at Rosemount RUC station and one shot was fired in return. A single sniper shots was fired at a road check on the Letterkenny Road but no one was hurt. The Guildhall Square in Derry was evacuated while troops dealt with a suspect bomb in a lorry. It turned out to be a hoax. Later troops at Bishops Gate and Waterloo Place came under fire. There were a number of stoning
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incidents at checkpoints in the city. In Newry the RUC fired on what they believed to be gunmen who were attempting to stop traffic at Camlough Road. The guns turned out to be artificial firearms. In Dungannon the army fired on a gunman spotted at the An army snatch squad grab a rioter during rear of the Windmill disturbances in Castle Street after a nationalist Housing Estate on the parade was refused permission to go into Belfast city centre Ballygawley Road. A bomb went off near a policeman’s home in the Castlewellan area. The Provisional Sinn Fein ‘Black Flag’ march in protest against the Queens visit ended with brief but vicious rioting in the Castle Street area of Belfast when the demonstrators clashed with the army and RUC. Police formed a barrier at the junction of Castle Street and King Street but violence flared when the crowd reached the cordon.
A rioter is beaten with batons during the disturbances
A joyful member of the RUC at the city centre disturbances
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Belfast Magazine
way radios and 125 bullets. In a vacant house in Norglen Parade they seized a .303 carbine and a double barrelled sawn off shotgun. Sporadic rioting continued in the area with gangs of youths throwing stones at soldiers as the search was carried out. The Belfast Brigade of the Provisional IRA later a d m i t t e d responsibility for the gun and grenade attacks on the army.
Cemetery in the Bogside, Derry. A plastic bag containing almost 350 bullets was found during excavation work at Gobbins Brae, Islandmagee.
Traffic on the Belfast to Bangor Road was disrupted at Holywood after a stolen car was found abandoned at Glencraig Park, Holywood. The army Castle Street disturbances carried out a controlled explosion on the suspect Royal Marine Neil The device was vehicle, but it was A single shot was Bewley, aged 19, a thrown at a foot patrol found to be harmless. heard near the City single man form and exploded near Telford Shropshire two soldiers. One lost was shot dead. He a foot and the other was a member of a was also injured. Traffic on the Antrim but claimed no hits. foot patrol moving Road and on the M2 through Norglen A sniper fired at an between Greencastle Rioting started in Drive when a sniper army land rover as it and Glengormley was Derry as the fired a single shot. drove along Gransha diverted after a Apprentice Boys left. Marine Bewley was Park. The vehicles suspect package was Gangs of youths hit in the chest and driver was grazed by found on the bridge. threw bottles and died in hospital. He a bullet but was not It was a hoax. stones at soldiers at hurt. was a member of 45 seriously the Waterloo Place commando Royal Troops searched Near Coalisland two army checkpoint and Marines based at Fort houses in a follow up shots were fired at a soldiers replied by operation. At an police car on patrol firing plastic bullets. Monagh. unoccupied house in between Newmills A blast bomb attack Ardmonagh Parade and Stewartstown. An army patrol found in Norglen Parade they found two The shots missed and .38 revolver and 11 injured one soldier. revolvers, two two- the RUC returned fire bullets hidden in a
Saturday 13th August 1977
Monday 15th August 1977
Belfast Magazine
culvert at Fofanyreagh near Castlewellan. The army blew up a suspect milk churn 15 minutes before the
Queen arrived by helicopter for her Jubilee visit. The controlled explosion was heard at Hillsborough Castle.
Wednesday 17th August 1977 In Derry a gunman of the Creggan but no fired a single shot at one was hurt. Fire an army patrol in the was not returned. Raymore Drive area
Friday 19th August 1977 Five firebombs were found in shops and businesses in and around Belfast. Two of the five were at the Education and Library Board offices in Academy Street. They were defused. Another at Cavendish Woodhouse furniture shop in Castle Place was also defused. Two exploded at the nearby Van Allan boutique and at Moffetts soft furnishing warehouse at Dunmurry, causing slight damage. A total of 15 incendiaries were planted and were cassette type firebombs. At one stage 180 firemen were dealing with 26
fires but within one hour all the fires were under control. The firebombs were brought to the city centre by two young women who had the devices hidden under a blanket in a pram. The fire incidents were logged as: 6pm Jamal Fashions in Winetavern Street. Two devices found in a box of tights were defused. 7.45pm Incendiary exploded in a toilet at DuBarrys bar at Queens Square. Slight scorch damaged reported. 9.05pm A device was found in a jacket pocket in Frazer’s in
Castle Street. It was defused, but just after midnight another exploded in the shop. Damage was slight. 10.36pm One of two devices found in Petal Boutique in Donegall Square exploded. Damage was slight and there were no injuries. 11pm An incendiary went off in a toilet roll stand at Crazy Prices, Glengormley. Damage was slight. 11.06pm Several suites of furniture were damaged in a fire a Woodhouse Furniture
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Shop in Castle Place. There was smoke damage. 11.07pm Petrol bombs were lobbed over a wall into the yard at Ardoyne bus depot. 11.41pm A device exploded in Jays fashion shop in Donegall Place 5.50am An incendiary went off at McMullan’s shop in Smithfield. The army found 57 rounds of ammunition in a plastic bag during a search of Ballykelly Road near Limavady.
Monday 22nd August 1977 William Martin, a retired poultry dealer from Armagh was shot dead by the IRA who claimed he was an informer. He was 62 and married and his body was found two miles form his home at St Josephs Place, Crossmaglen. His semi invalid wife who was in the bathroom at the time of the shooting heard movement in the
kitchen and her husband shouting. She thought he was shouting at the cats. When she got to the kitchen she found the armchair pulled back and black scrape marks on the tiled floor. Her husbands hat was lying on the footpath outside their gate. His body was found at Foxs Field on a narrow road between Moybane
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and Concession Road. He had been shot in the head. The IRA alleged he belonged to a ring of informers and had ignored repeated warnigns but his family and the RUC denied he was an
informant. Incendiary devices were found Eastwoods shop in Castle Street but they were defused. Another device at Du Barrys bar in Princes Street went off but caused slight damage.
Tuesday 23rd August 1977 A small bomb factory and 2000 rounds of assorted ammunition were discovered by Gardai in a routine search of the Burtonport area of Donegal. They also found an old type of rifle, three steel ammunition boxes, five combat jackets
and 14 pairs of binoculars. Two large plastic jars contained the bomb making equipment which included electric batteries, mouse traps, fuse wires, detonators and nine clocks. Also in the disused house were five empty oil drums.
Wednesday 24th August 1977 An attempt was made on the life of the Provisional Sinn Fein chief. His 22 year old daughter escaped injury when she opened a parcel bomb delivered to their house. The device contained only a small amount of explosives but it could have killed anyone holding it.
The army were called to the scene and the house and area were evacuated while the device was defused. A cache of homemade hand grenades were uncovered in Tyrone. They were found in the Altnaglushan near Dungannon. A joint police and army
search discovered 20 between rival gangs grenades in a black of youths in the bag under a hedge. Templemore Avenue area. Police were In east Belfast three attacked when they people were arrested arrived at the scene after police moved in but the crowd was during stoning dispersed.
Thursday 25th August 1977 Parcel bombs were found in Belfast’s Post Office sorting offices. All the targets had connections to Sinn Fein and were addressed to republicans living in north and west Belfast. Mail
deliveries were cancelled as searches took place. A soldier of the 2nd armoured division, Engineer Regiment based at the Grand Central army post in Royal Avenue Belfast was injured as he
Belfast Magazine
tried to remove a the security wall device from Tomb being built at the Street. Royal Victoria Hospital after an IRA Work was stopped on threat to bricklayers.
who was deaf and dumb, was shot in the leg in an entry off the West Circular Road. An incendiary device
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was found in John Frazer’s menswear shop in Gresham Street and was defused by the army.
Friday 26th August 1977 Tuesday 30th August 1977 A soldier was injured when a sniper fired two high velocity rounds at a mobile patrol. It happened at the junction of Springfield Road and Divismore Crescent when men from 3rd Batt, Light Infantry came under attack but Lance corporal Jack hospital for grazes returned no fire. One Marshall, 25, married caused by a bullet bullet struck the side with 2 children was fragment. of a Saracen and the shot dead when his foot patrol came Jack Marshall was under fire in the from the Gordon William J Smith aged Brompton Park area Highlanders 1st 29 and married with of Ardoyne in Belfast. battalion and he was 2 children was shot A nine year old girl from Dundee in dead while on patrol was treated in Scotland. in the lower Antrim A soldier was shot in Derry city centre. The shooting happened at the Butchers gate checkpoint near the Diamond. Two men approached the
checkpoint on foot; one produced a pistol, and fired at point blank range. Then they fled. The Derry brigade of the IRA c l a i m e d responsibility.
Sunday 28th August 1977
soldier was hilt. Later the IRA claimed responsibility for the shooting. The RUC found a .177 airgun wrapped in polythene, and concealed in a hedge at Richill near Armagh. The search was carried out as a result of information received.
Wednesday 31st August 1977
Monday 29th August 1977 Two children escaped injury when their bedroom was raked with gunfire. The young children were asleep in the house at Hornbeam Walk, Dunmurry, when five shots were fired through their
bedroom window. Two of the bullets lodged in the ceiling. A soldier was injured when on patrol near Corrigan Park on the Whiterock Road. He was grazed by a bullet. An 18 year old youth,
Road in Belfast. He was a front seat passenger in an army land rover on patrol at Kinnaird Street when shots were fired from a derelict house at the corner of Dawson Street in the New Lodge area on the opposite side of the main road. Corporal Smith, a soldier with
the Royal Green Jackets, was hit in the chest and head and died before reaching hospital. Two children playing near the patrol, which was returning to Girdwood army base, were slighly injured by bullet fragments in the attack. Corporal Smith was originally from Huyton in Lancashire and his wife was expecting their third child when he was shot dead.
Murders, Ghosts and Bodysnatchers
The Darker Side of Belfast’s History Every Sunday the Glenravel Project conduct a fascinating tour which explores the darker side of Belfast’s history. The city centre tour meets at St Anne’s Cathedral and ends at Castle Junction where all the horrific executions took place and where we will look at the gory details behind a few of them. Before that we will tell a few of the ghost stories from that area such as the tragedy which occurred in the Lucifer Match Factory and Smithfield Mill before moving on to the old Victorian red light district and exploring what life was really like there. We will look at the popular bar room activity where bets were taken on killing rats with bare teeth as well as some of the ‘dreadful’ crimes which saw some of the areas residents being transported. There will be more murder stories as well as the sad ghost story telling the fate of the Five Mary’s. We will visit Academy Street where the lodgings of most of Belfast’s bodysnatchers were situated. We will hear the tales of how they robbed the local graveyards of corpses and why they tore the teeth from the heads. We will then cross to the site of the infamous Hundon’s Entry which was so notorious even the police refused to go in. The total cost is £10 per person and will include a fascinating DVD looking at the darker side of Belfast’s history. To secure your place you can book online at
www.toursofbelfast.com ISSN 1470-0417
£2.50