Stumbled on this great site by chance. Should be called NIAGARA itself a Lisburn Institution I have lovely memories of your grandfather Isaac and your father Jim and his sister. Great to see names from my past----Brownlee,Wallace HS,Castle Gds.,Wallace Park,Barbour Playing Fields,Bcourt House gang,Bachelors Walk,Lisburn Cricket Club,Lisnagarvey Hockey Club etc.. My father was Sgt.John Lowry of RUC barracks in Castle St.,where we lived til his death. Later I lived in Llewellyn Ave.,went to Narrabeen Nth. And Wollongong in NSW., returned to Antrim Rd. Area , moved to Bunratty Co Clare almost 20 years ago and recently to live in Dooradoyle,Limerick City. Taught some of the posters at WHS, Lisburn Tech., Castlereagh CFE, and latterly retired as Principal of Armagh CFE. Member of Lisnagarvey Hockey Club for almost 50 years. Incidentally you can read more in a new book to be published at end Nov. BLUE BLOODS. A Memoir of Lisnagarvey Hockey Club by WKLowry. Happy to hear from all who remember me. Ray Willis, Trevor Coombes, Walter Gibson,John McHenry,Ray Hunter,George Elder, class of 1949 at WHS., etc.... P.S. Ray Willis, Trevor Coombes, Bertie Davidson, and Joe Kennedy were doyen trade teachers in Lisburn and their skills will never be surpassed.

Mr Willis was my trade teacher 1967/71 he went to live in Canada and I believe he has passed away.

Bill, welcome to the Exiles. Hope to hear more from you. I'm in a hurry today so haven't time to say any more.

Hi Billy,

Welcome to the Forum, you probably don't remember me, Billy Hanna(Beano). I was a very close friend of a school chum of yours the Late Billy Vogan(Bugs). Billy and I remained friends up until he passed away a few years ago. You can see a photo of Billy, Myself and Billy Mc Cullagh in the the exiles old photos. Great to see you posting........ it is a great site, I consider a lot of the contributors as unseen friends.

Beano

Hi Billy, just spotted your message. Thank you for your kind words about my dad Jim and granda Isaac. My dad set up LISBURN.COM at the end of the '90s and had so much enjoyment from it over the years, particularly with the Lisburn Exiles forum. I don't recognise any of the names you mentioned unfortunately, but I'm sure some of the old-timers will! I look forward to hearing some of your memories of the town (sorry, City!) and its many characters. Darryl Collins

Thanks Darryl. Your Dad and his sister Iris went to Railway St church with me. I remember his return from Canada and set up The Niagara and like your name is the Canada connection ,my own son is Darrell. Your grandad and gran were regulars at our functions in the old Blaris , Lisnagarvey Hockey Club and loved their nights there.kind regards will try to meet you when in Lisburn for my book launch at Garvey likely on 30 Nov.

I do of course remember you everybody at that time knew Beano you were such a messer! Sad to learn of my school chum Billy Vogan passing. He lived opposite John McHenry who I see posts on the Exiles site. I remember Gertie Vogan too. Stay well and out of trouble. Billy

Hello Bill Lowry,

Welcome to the Forum, we need new blood, a voice from the past. I seem to remember a Mr. Lowry from the Tech. in the 50's, was that yourself.? Mr Waring was Principal then. Also remember the others you mention, sorry to hear Ray Willis is gone. R.I.P.

Couldn't believe when you said you now live in Dooradoyle. We lived there in the 70's, after living near Bunratty too. We now live in Co. Clare, near Ardnacrusha. Ships passing in the night.

Congratulations on the book, good luck with it.

Pat

Thanksgiving Pat had a B&B on Hill Rd Bunratty for 20 yrs. No not me at Tech in 50s me at Wallace HS then only a boy! Didn't,t know Ray Willis had passed. Thanks for good wishes on book will be on sale 10stg and 12 Euros here. After 30 Nov. launch in Lisburn.

I am really saddened to hear of the passing of Ray Willis who was one of those wonderful teachers or instructors of the Lisburn Tech. I personally attended Wallace High School but some of us lucky ones got to go to the Tech for metalworking in the mid forties. Mr Willis was our assigned teacher for that subject and he was an excellent instructor.

I recall bringing home from class, a piece of unfinished Work in Progress in the form of a metal rod, turned on a lathe. I had left it lying around and my father somehow made use of it to hammer out a frozen pin on a piece of farm equipment. This completely disfigured my project but when I explained what had happened to Mr. Willis, he was very understanding and graded my project with consideration for my fathers actions.

Unknown to Ray, a group of us Hillsborough louts had acquired a taste for riding in second and sometimes first class carriages, when we caught the train from Lisburn station. Much more comfortable and classy than the third class compartments our parents had paid for. Unfortunately a young railway attendant soon got on to us and locked us in the higher class carriages just before the train left the station. This left us to the mercy of his counterpart in Hillsborough, when we tried to get off the train.

We decided that we needed to make a key, similar to the one used to by this cheeky blurt, to lock us in. Yes the key was made in Ray Willis' class and it worked perfectly. Had he known about our underground project he may not have condoned our actions but I know, he would have been proud of our metalworking.

For a long time afterwards, we used this key to open first class carriages and ride in style to Hillsborough station, not worrying about being locked in when we tried to leave.

R.I.P. Mr Willis, Fortycoats

Hi Bill
I think you must be the same Bill Lowry who I remember being a pupil at Wallace HS when I was there in the early fifties. YOu were one of the 'big boys'then, maybe a dreaded prefect, or even worse Head Boy. I remember being brought up to the prefects meeting on a regular basis for being seen coming to and from School not wearing my Beret and making myself late by spending time on the swings in the Wallace Park! My favourite teacher was Mr Cuthbertson and who from WHS does not remember or fear Mr Maunsell, the Latin teacher!
I too spent many happy evenings in the old Lisnagarvey Hockey Club listening to Stanley Howard giving his all singing 'Okie from Muskokie' (apologies for the spelling). That was all such a long time ago. John Waring and yourself I remember particularly well from WHS, hope I am talking to the right W Lowry !
I have been living in Spain now for the past 13 years but everytime I go back home (Lisburn) I suffer terribly from homesickness when I have to return to Spain, regardless of the beautiful weather and great lifestyle here !
Aldene Topping (nee Wilson)

Thanks Billy. Best wishes for the book launch. If you want me to put something on the website about the book and the launch, let me know. Darryl

Billy, I think I remember your Dad during the war years,am I right? I think it was him who stopped to talk to my aunt who was wheeling her bike up Chapel Hill and was tellig her about the problems the police were having with large amounts of illegal booze (Poteen) that was coming into the town and being sold to the large number of American troops around the town. Little did he know that covered up in the basket of my aunt's bike were two bottles of the stuff, as at that time she was the Mangeress of the Forces Canteen located in the Assemble Buildings and someone had given them to her. Mauri PS. Chestnut,Webster,Turner,Morton were other police officers I remember from that time. M.

We only moved to Lisburn in 1947 myDad was Station Sgt. And the names of other police are correct.

OOPs I got my sergeamts mixed up, I wouldn't remember him in 1947 as I was only in Lisburn for two weeks in Febuary of that year the next eithteen monts spent based in Simonstown South Africa between cruises up both the East and West coasts of Africa and the Antartic. Mauri

Mauri, is there anywhere you haven't been?

Ann, Still a few places left?, but time running out, this will be the first year in the 27 years that Joy and me have been married that we didn't take one or two trips, we had booked a cruise back in Febuary but had to cancel, Joy not up to facing the crowded airports and hassles with travelling, "Ah Well" it was good while it lasted. Mauri

Mauri
What a great adventurous life!

You know Dabbler, I have never really thought of my life as adventurous, though when I think about it,it sure was a humdinger in a lot of ways and I think I used uo about at least seven of my nine lives. Good Healthl and Long Life to you. Mauri