“…… is mightier than the sword”

Recently, our roaming reporter Terry Tedstone visited Seamus Heaney’s Homeplace in Baellaghy, Co. Derry and sent this back.

After a lovely lunch, in the sunshine, from the on-site Cafe, we proceeded to Reception. (wife, daughter, grandchild and me).

A most eloquent and knowledgeable guide introduced us to the place and to our self-guide audio devices.

When I mentioned that we were from Buncrana, she said “you must see this” and took us to the first exhibit.

This was a display case with a pen and a hand written poem.

She said that Heaney’s parents took him to Buncrana as a treat, on his way to boarding school in St. Colm’s College, Derry, when he was eleven years old.

While there, they bought him a Conway Stewart fountain pen, which was and still is an expensive luxury item.

When pressed as to the shop it was bought in, She said that they got an email recently, from a researcher to say that it was bought in Souvenir House, owned by the McConnell family.

I spoke to Eunan McConnell since and he confirmed that they did indeed stock the Conway Stewart, but he had not heard the story.

It is nice to know that Buncrana played a small but significant part in the beginnings of the career of this great man.