North of Ireland 1960s

Main St, Dunfanaghy. These are a motley crew, the least uninteresting and incompetent images from 2 rolls of FP3 I shot in the course of a family holiday in the north of Ireland in, I think, July or August of 1963. Judge them leniently please, for I was quite young and using my first and very basic 35mm camera, a Halina 35X. I can't provide an exact location for many of them - if anyone else can, I'd be grateful.

Pound St, Dunfanaghy.

The harbour, Dunfanaghy.

Ros na Cille D189, at Downings. This trawler, built here in 1956, is preserved at Greencastle Maritime Museum. ps I've only just realised that the two men walking together are my father George McCallum (on the right) and his pal Willie Wasson who was a native of this part of Ireland.

A currach.

This and the following 8 shots were taken in the Town Park of Letterkenny (I only know this as the buildings in the background are identifiable as St Conal's Hospital) where the annual Show or Fair or whatever was being held.

Recedite, plebes! Gero rem imperialem!

A champion sheep.

The poultry section.

Father, son, two cockerel, and some formidable ladies.

Is it not passing brave to be a king and ride in triumph through Persepolis?

Muckish? Not sure.

Ards Friary, of the Capuchin Order. This building, the former Ards House of 1708, was replaced a couple of years later.

On Derry's walls, looking northwest towards the Creggan, with the spire of St Eugene's RC Cathedral.

Cannon near Shipquay Gate.

The Walker Pillar was built in 1828 to commemorate one of the governors of the city during the siege of 1689. With an internal stair of 105 steps, one for each day of the siege, leading to a viewing platform, it was surmounted by a large statue of the Rev.Mr Walker, pointedly facing towards the Nationalist areas of the Bogside and Creggan. In the early hours of August 27th 1973, with the Army busy elsewhere after a diversionary hoax bomb warning, the pillar, seen by the IRA as a symbol of Unionist triumphalism, was felled by a large explosion.

From the top of the Pillar, looking southwest, over the Bogside (greatly redeveloped since, I think) and beyond to the River Foyle.

and north to northeast.

Looking down on the wall from the top of the pillar, but I can't make sense of the view, not unless there were some big changes before the Google streetview car came along. Maybe a trip on Ryanair is called for. Ok, mystery solved - the street is Nailors' Row, the houses were demolished about 10 years after this photo, and the street is now a grassy bank. Thanks to JPC for the information.

I must have had my Kodak Bantam Colorsnap with me as well, for I've found the slides from an 828 roll of Kodachrome taken on the same trip. This is Downings harbour, and the fishing boat is the Ros na Cille again.

Port na Blath.

Port na Blath

Marble Hill (according to the note on the slide).

In Dunfanaghy (could that be the Market House?) or perhaps Letterkenny. My father is towards the left, strong arms folded, and my mother has the hefty handbag. Between them are Willie Wasson and his wife (?Sadie). The tall man on the left is, I think, another Wasson, Willie's brother maybe. The man on the right, arms round his wife and daughters, was I seem to recall a professional photographer (local or a visitor, couldn't say) and I think I was entrusted with his camera to take this, so the only copy I have is a 6x4 print

We stopped in one of the Ulster seaside resorts on the way back to Larne, not sure which one.