McCarron plaque to be erected in Bogside

The commemoration to honour the several times President of the Irish Trades Union Congress will take place at 48 Stanley’s Walk at 1 p.m.

The event has been organised by the Derry Trades Union Council (DTUC) in memory of a man who served for several years as an Alderman on the old Derry Corporation before his death on the RMS Leinster which sank after being torpedoed by a German U-boat in the Irish Sea on October 10, 1918.

DTUC Vice-chairman John Black said: “Alderman McCarron, a father of seven from Stanley’s Walk, was a tailor who rose to prominence in trade unions in the 1890s.

“He served as President of the Irish Trades Union Congress on three occasions which also included James Connolly and Jim Larkin.

“At the time, local papers reported the sinking of the RMS Leinster on October 10, 1918 and said there was a ‘universal feeling of grief’ at the death of Alderman McCarron.

“He was described as ‘one of the ablest and most respected labour leaders in Ireland and one of the best and most highly esteemed citizens of Derry.’”

Tomorrow members of the DTUC will be joined by representatives of Derry and Strabane District Council and members of Alderman McCarron’s family for the official unveiling of the plaque.

This will be followed by a talk and social gathering at Mailey’s Bar on the Lecky Road at 2 p.m.

The lecture will be delivered by local historian Dr. Adrian Grant, whose work, including his most recent publication, ‘Derry: The Irish Revolution, 1912-23’, has featured elements of the life and career of one of the foremost political and labour figures in Derry from the 1890s to the 1910s.