Greencastle Orange Hall

Greencastle Orange Hall (L.O.L. No. 658), Whitewell Road, taken on the same day that the SF mayor of Derry helped the Apprentice Boys launch a new museum/visitors centre in the city.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Alternatives

This board is on the end of the Hubb Community Resources Centre and Bowling Club in St. Vincent Street; across the street is Crusaders football ground.

From the Tele: “The building was once the home for local Civil Defence during World War II’s ‘Blitz’. This building is now the one of the last remaining Civil Defence structures in Northern Ireland and has also played home to the local Senior Bowls Club for many years.” The mural also shows bombed-out homes and children going off to the countryside. Here is a short documentary about the 1941 Belfast Blitz (youtube).

Here is a badge of the YRCD & Bowling Club.

The wide shot immediately below explains one meaning of the word “Alternatives”. The Hubb has cross-border financial support — note the (Irish Republic) Dept. of Foreign Affairs sponsorship in the information plaque.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00688 X00689 X00691 York Road Civil Defence Hall the blitz hubb youth group 2011, european union regional development fund investing in your future peace III programme 2007-2013

We The People

A colourful mural on Sráıd Brighton (Brighton Street, Falls at Broadway) from the organization Pobal.

“ar scáth a chéıle” is a shortened version of  “Is ar scáth a chéıle a mhaıreann na daoıne”: it is in each other’s shadow (or, as here?, umbr(ell)a) that the people exist; figuratively “no man is an island” or as Dimitry put it in Dostoevsky’s The Brother Karamazov, “we are all responsible for all”.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00681 conflict resolution services, 217 falls rd, belfast, ag abhcóıdeacht ar son na gaeılge, pobal: advocacy for the irish language, forbaırt pobaıl, community development, taıghde, research, faıreachán, monitoring, straıtéıs, strategy, cearta & ceılıúıradh, rights and revelry, ealaíon, arts, reachtaíoch, legislation

Sporting Giants

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19 of Ireland/Northern Ireland’s Olympic medal winners are honoured in a new mural outside Coláıste Feırste (whose motto – “Is Gael Mıse” – can be seen in the final detail shot), an area also known as the Giant’s Foot, and below a mural about the Titanic, featured previously: one | two.

The 19 are: Fred Tiedt, Tony Byrne, Sonia O’Sullivan, Ronnie Delaney, Paddy Barnes, Wayne McCullough, Michael McCourt, Mary Peters, Freddy Gilroy, Pat O’Callaghan, Michael Carruth, Kenny Egan, Ben Suth, Bob Tisdall, Hugh Russell, Katie Taylor, John Caldwell, John McNulty, John Tracey.

BBC report on the launch.

There was a mural celebrating Michael Conlan’s Olympic bronze earlier in 2012.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Beechmount Park is gael mıse, ıs fearr an tsláınte ná na táınte

The Bone

The place-name “Machaıre Bhotháın” perhaps gave rise to the name “The Marrow Bone”, the area around where the Park Inn was, between Ardoyne and Oldpark. (Machaıre – a plain, level land; botháın – hut, shed, cabin. Perhaps a reference to cattle grazing in summer pasture).

The three figures at the top are from left to right – Seán Mac Dıarmada (who was from Leitrim but was a boarder for a time in Butler Street), Pól DeLéıgh, Seán McCaughey; the mini-bus driver is Brendan Bradley. The green-and-yellow uniforms are from Coláıste Feırste. Signed “M Doc 2011” (Mıcheál Dochartaıgh).

With support from Glór [An Tuascırt] and the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The Great Hunger was previously on this wall (hence the plough). Ardoyne Avenue.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
[X00526] X00633 Staır na gaeılge in ard eoın & machaıre botháın, glór an tuaıscaırt, teach de leıgh, heritage lottery fund, comhıonanas don gaeılge, club óıge, flax cabs tacsaıthe lín, sıopaí, glasraí, baınne, nuachtán, tobac, fáılte

White Star Worker

Another detail (and wide shot below) from the new Titanic mural at Coláıste Feırste, also featured previously.

Wide shot of the whole …

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Copyright © 2012 Extramural Activity
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Titanic Lifeboat

Part of a colourful new mural about the Titanic, on Beechview Park, outside Coláıste Feırste. It was launched together with a mural depicting 19 Irish/Northern Irish Olympians. The Olympian mural starts of the gate of Coláıste Feırste, runs up a slight slope, and at the corner the Titanic mural continues. (BBC report on the launch.)

According to the Belfast City Council, the murals “which were funded by Belfast City Council, the Department for Social Development and the PSNI, have been developed in partnership with Beechview Residents’ Association, Coláıste Feırste and the Upper Springfield Community Safety Forum.”

Click here for other Titanic-related posts.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Memory Chair

The chair and shoes in the foreground of the David Ervine board are a bronze sculpture, shown above. There are a number of (sculpted) items on the seat of the chair: a ticket for the Titanic, a little (prayer?) book with a poppy on the cover, and a pipe.

According to the Belfast Telegraph, the whole is meant to symbolize the industrial and cultural heritage of the area and the pipe is David Ervine’s pipe. The pipe would also tie him to Gusty Spence (cited in this republican mural about collusion), who also smoked a pipe. The prayer book would be for Protestantism, the poppy for loyalism and service in WWI, and the ticket for the shipyard. As for the boots, they appear to be of a modern design, but are perhaps meant to symbolize the working class, today and yesterday.

Both the sculpture and the board are by Ross Wilson.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Our Brave Defenders

In memory of the dead from the 36th (Ulster) Division in St Leonard’s Crescent (the old Newcastle Street) in east Belfast. The four main panels show the men of the 36th going over the top on the first day of the Somme (1st July 1916), the “angel of Mons” (WP), Ulster Tower (This tower was dedicated to the glory of God. In grateful memory of the officers, non commissioned officers and men of the 36th (Ulster) Division, and of the sons of Ulster in other forces who laid down their lives in the great war, and of all their comrades in arms who, by divine grace, were spared to testify to their glorious deeds. “Throughout the long years of struggle …. the men of Ulster have proved how nobly they fight and die” – 16th November 1918 King George V), and Thiepval Memorial (Dear men and brothers, going out/to fight for Ulster’s need/we hail you with a mighty shout/brave friends, and true in deed.//Your country holds you in renown/your names will never be dead/and some sweet angel has a crown/for each dear, manly head.)

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Free The Shankill Six

Graffiti in lower Shankill: “Free the Lower Shankill Six!! Send our prisoners home.”

According to this blog post, this is not political, but refers instead to six fellas done for stealing pallets. (Which perhaps means we can safely enjoy the old joke about the journalist asking the politician, “And what do you think about the Renault 5?”. To which the politician replied, “I think they should be released immediately.”)

To the right is a C-18 swastika.

Previously the “Play” mural and before that the “Can it change? We believe!” mural.

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Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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