Strabane

Infobox Irish Place|thumb|left|name = Strabane
gaeilge = An tSraith Bhán
crest

motto = Concordia Crescit
"Let Goodwill Increase"
map

pin coords = left: 43px; top: 53px
north coord = 54.833333
west coord = 7.47
province = Ulster
county = County Tyrone
NI district = Strabane
UK constituency = West Tyrone
EU constituency = Northern Ireland
stdcode = 028, +44 28
posttown = Strabane
postcode = BT82
population = 16,000
web = http://www.strabanedc.com

Strabane (IPAEng|strəˈbæn; Irish, "An Srath Bán", Fair River Valley or White Strand) is a town in the west of County Tyrone and the north-west of Northern Ireland. The town straddles the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland with the town of Lifford, County Donegal, to the west. Strabane is the second largest town in the county. It stands roughly half-way between Omagh and Derry and roughly half-way between Omagh and Letterkenny and has a population of 16,000 people. It contains the headquarters of Strabane District Council ("Comhairle Ceantair an tSratha Báin"). The "County Town" of County Donegal, Lifford, lies on the other side of the River Foyle (across Lifford Bridge), which marks the border between the two counties.

The River Mourne flows through the centre of the town, and meets with the River Finn to form the River Foyle. Strabane suffered huge economic damage in 1987 when much of the centre of the town was flooded.

Strabane is twinned with Zeulenroda in the District of Thuringia, Germany.

Recent history

Strabane once had the dubious distinction of having the highest unemployment rate in the European Union. It is one of the most economically deprived towns in the United Kingdom. [ [http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/enterprise/reports/report2-00rvol5.htm Northern Ireland Assembly - Committee for Enterprise, Trade and Investment - Report on Strategy 2010 Inquiry (ANNEX 37, SECTION 2)] ] The average wage in Strabane is just £233 per week, compared with £320 in Northern Ireland and £349 in the UK.

In August 2005, a Channel 4 television programme presented by property experts Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer, named Strabane as the third worst place to live in the United Kingdom, largely because of the high unemployment rate. [ [http://www.channel4.com/4homes/ontv/best&worst/best&worst_strabane.html The Best and Worst Places to Live in Britain ] ] Strabane has however moved out of the top 20 for the 2007 edition. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7045609.stm BBC NEWS | Northern Ireland | Town shrugs off dismal TV label ] ]

The Strabane transmitting station, located in Legfordrum and highly visible on approach to the town, was opened in 1963 to extend the range of television transmissions. The town was also noted on the old UTV logo that featured a rough representation of major towns in Northern Ireland.

The Troubles

Strabane was scarred by the Troubles, (it was once known as the most bombed town in Europe per size since the Second World War) [ [http://www.channel4.com/4homes/ontv/best&worst/2006/strabane.html Channel 4 - Best and worst 2006] ] beginning in the early 1970s and continuing throughout much of the 1990s, with bombings commonplace and Irish Republican paramilitary groups, mainly the Provisional Irish Republican Army, regularly attacking the bases of both the British army and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) located in the town. Many British soldiers, RUC officers and civilians met their deaths in Strabane and the surrounding, predominantly rural, area. Some civilians were killed controversially by the British army, others by republican paramilitaries in deliberate attacks or when caught up in attacks on the security forces.

Many army regiments from England, Scotland and Wales served in Strabane at various times during the Troubles, but there is no longer any permanent British army presence in the town.

Both the Ballycolman and Head of the Town areas suffered greatly from deprivation, unemployment and the troubles, with riots, shootings and bomb incidents in the area commonplace as well as confrontations between British Forces and the local population, especially throughout the 1970s and 80s.Fact|date=May 2008 Recent times however have seen an upturn for the area with Development agencies and community organisations setting up new centres of activity for adults and young people - including a new "multi-purpose community centre" in Fountain Street. Work schemes have also been effective in alleviating unemployment in the areaFact|date=May 2008 and refurbishing homes as well as transforming the local environment.Fact|date=May 2008

The Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) has carried out many high-profile armed robberies at locations such as banks and supermarkets in the town since 2001, which have tailed off since a BBC Northern Ireland Spotlight documentary highlighted the events in December 2004, although another robbery involving hostage taking occurred in October 2006. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6036385.stm BBC NEWS | Northern Ireland | Raid hostage women 'traumatised' ] ] One such robbery at the Ulster Bank in Strabane's Abercorn Square netted £500,000 for the organisation. [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/crime/article/0,,1378546,00.html £20m stolen in UK's biggest bank robbery - was it paramilitaries or common criminals? | UK news | The Guardian ] ] [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/3574228.stm BBC NEWS | UK | Northern Ireland | Four arrested over bank robbery ] ] Strabane has recently become involved in the Ulster Project International, sending Catholic and Protestant teenagers to the United States for prejudice-reduction work.Fact|date=May 2008

Transport

The town once boasted one of the busiest rail connections on the island. This fell into disuse over time, although an old railway building still stands in the town.

In 1792 the four mile (6 km) Strabane Canal was constructed from the tidal waters of Lough Foyle at Leck, to Strabane. The canal fell into disuse in 1962. In June 2006 the Strabane Lifford Development Commission awarded a £1.3m cross-border waterways restoration contract. The project was launched by President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, in Lifford and involves the restoration of one and a half miles of canal and two locks to working order. Work was due to start on the Lough Foyle side of the canal in the summer of 2006 but it never happened.

Demographics

Strabane is classified as a Medium Town by the [http://www.nisra.gov.uk/ NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA)] (ie with population between 10,000 and 18,000 people). On Census day on April 29 2001 there were 13,456 people living in Strabane. by mid 2008 the towns population has grown to over 16,000. Of these:

*99.3% classed their ethnic group as white
*93.3% were from a Catholic background and 6.1% were from a Protestant background
*43.6% of people aged 16-74 were economically inactive
* 6.8% of people aged 16-74 were unemployed
*15.6% of people aged 16-59 were claiming incapacity benefit
*27.6% were aged under 16 years and 13.7% were aged 60 and over
*48.1% of the population were male and 51.9% were female

Politics

At the local elections in May 2005, members of Strabane District Council were elected from the following political parties: 8 Sinn Féin, 3 Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), 2 Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), 2 Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) and 1 Independent Nationalist. The current Council Chairman is Councillor Jarlath McNulty(Sinn Féin). The Strabane District Council area covers an area of 861.6 km² and according to the 2001 Census, the council area had a total population of 38,250.

Pat Doherty, of Sinn Féin, is the local Member of Parliament for the constituency of West Tyrone.

Culture

port

The local Gaelic football team, Strabane Sigersons, and the hurling team, Strabane Seamrogaí, are ever expanding.Fact|date=May 2008 The Sigerson Cup, the All-Ireland colleges cup for Gaelic football, is named after a native of the town, Dr. Sigerson.

Strabane also boasts several local football teams that play in various leagues. Strabane FC, Mourne Harps, playing the Central Bookmakers Saturday Morning League and Sion Swifts whose two teams play in the CBSML and the North West Junior League all represent the local population.

Education

Strabane has an Irish language medium school named Naiscoil an tSratha Bain (the pre-school), which was founded in 1994, and a Gaelscoil (primary school). Other Irish Language Groups including Conradh na Gaeilge and Gaelphobal are also active in the Strabane District.Fact|date=May 2008 strabane opened a new school in 2008 called holy cross college.

Music and arts

CRAIC (Cultural Revival Among Interested Communities) a cross border, cross community group provide music lessons to both adults and children on a voluntary basis in the local Irish language Gaelscoil on Tuesday evenings. The "Barret School of Irish Dancing" has produced some of Irelands best Irish Dancers,Fact|date=May 2008 and the local theatre group, "The Puddle Alley Players", has won several awards over the years in several amateur dramatic competitions.Fact|date=May 2008

In 2007 the Alley Arts and Conference Centre opened to the general public, offering a 270 theatre, art gallery, tourist information centre and cafe bar.Fact|date=August 2008

Strabane also boasts two brass bands; Strabane Concert Brass, 5 times National Champions, as well as St Josephs Brass Band. Accordion bands also had been a feature of the culture in Strabane in the past, with the Mourne Accordion Band and Tom P Mullan Accordion Band. These were succeeded by the Oliver Plunket Band which survived until 2005. The town is currently represented by the Tom P Mullan Memorial Accordion Band, which was formed in 2006.

Strabane also has a flute band, The Strabane Memorial Flute Band, which attends Republican Parades and similar events throughout Ireland, Scotland and the USA.

One of Strabane's most notable features are five convert|20|ft|m|abbr=on steel structures: two dancers, a fiddle player on the Lifford side, a flute player on the Strabane side and a drummer in the middle. Designed by Maurice Harron, [ [http://www.mauriceharron.com/ Maurice Harron-Artist-sculptor ] ] they were placed at the former British army base at the Donegal border. Affectionately known locally as "The Tinneys." [ [http://veryderry.com/db/location.php?pano=25 Very Derry: The Tinneys ] ]

Places of interest

The wider area surrounding Strabane has many scenic forests and glens,Fact|date=May 2008 and angling and fishing tourism is popular in the River Mourne, particularly between Victoria Bridge and Strabane. Golfing legend Tiger Woods fished this stretch of the river in a recent visit. The town is home to one of Ireland's largest golf courses.

The National Trust owns the Strabane house in which John Dunlap learnt the printing trade. Dunlap went on to print the United States Declaration of Independence. The house has been visited by several famous people, including former US President Bill Clinton. It is located at the end of the Main Street.

Nearby Strabane is Dergalt, the ancestral home of Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States [http://www.geographia.com/northern-ireland/ukiher01.htm#Tyrone] , which on the 8th of May 2008 been severely damaged by fire. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7390179.stm]

Strabane is also the location of the first ever gay bar to open outside of a major city in Ireland. 'The Central' bar opened on the 4th of April 2008 and was praised by both local and national press. [http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/0501/1209420699911.html] [http://www.nwipp-newspapers.com/SC/free/315068295700697.php]

People

*Paul Brady - singer songwriter
*Flann O'Brien - best known pseudonym of Brian O'Nolan, 20th century Irish satirist and humorist. He also wrote under the pseudonym Myles na gCopaleen
*William Burke - 19th century serial killer, from Urney, a Strabane townland
*Guy Carleton 1st Baron Dorchester, KB - Governor of the Province of Quebec & Governor General of British North America
*Declan Curry - business correspondent on the BBC One Breakfast programme.
*Brian Dooher and Stephen O'Neill - key members of the 2003 and 2005 all-Ireland winning Tyrone Gaelic football team
*Hugo Duncan - popular entertainer known as "the wee man from Strabane."
*John Dunlap - printer of the United States Declaration of Independence
*Pearse McCauley - IRA member jailed for the killing of Detective Garda Jerry McCabe [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/37029.stm BBC News | World | Jail breaker on police killing charge ] ]
*Gerard Ó Dochartaigh - Irish language activist for whom the local Gaelscoil (Irish Language school) is named
*Dr George Sigerson - Gaelic activist and namesake of the Sigerson Cup
*Annie Scott Dill Maunder, nee Russell - astronomer.
*Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States, was of Ulster-Scots descent on both sides of his family. He was the grandson of a printer from Dergalt, near Strabane, whose former home is open to visitors.

References

External links

* [http://www.strabanedc.com/ Strabane District Council]
* [http://www.strabanehistorysociety.com/ Strabane History Society]

See also

*List of towns in Northern Ireland
*List of villages in Northern Ireland