‘Most destructive and tragic fire in history of Dundalk’

A fatal fire which took place in the town centre of Dundalk at 2am on Friday August 27 1920, saw the lives of three young people tragically snuffed out along with the destruction of a bank and two of the larger business houses on Clanbrassil Street.

Another large shop on the opposite side of the street was also damaged by fire at the same time.

While the destruction of the premises was very serious the loss of the three young lives left local people without words.

The fire was described in the Democrat on August 28 as ‘The most destructive and tragic fire that has occurred in the history of Dundalk’.

The blaze commenced at approximately 2am in Craig’s drapery shop, which was one of the largest shops in Dundalk at the time.

This shop was located on the west side of Clanbrassil Street close to the Square.

The fire tooj such a grip on the building that it quickly spread to the two buildings on either side of it, Messrs McGorisk’s and the Ulster Bank.

These three sites are now occupied by the Ulster bank (same location), The Market Bar and AIB.

IN Craig’s shop on the first and second floors there was accommodation for a number of the shop’s employees.

There were a total of twelve of them sleeping there that night.

The alarm was raised shortly after the fire started by three night workers in the nearby Post Office who immediately set about providing ladders to enable the staff to escape from the burning buildings.

Having done this, the three got on bicycles and alerted the fire fighters. In response to their effort, the town’s fire brigade fought the fire, as well as army personnel from the military barracks and a number of private firms who possessed fire fighting equipment.

All was in vain and the three buildings were destroyed.

Directly opposite the three gutted buildings, an attempt had been made to set fire to the shop of Mr JD Melville, tailors and outfitters (now the Permanent TSB branch), but ignition failed and the damage was minimal. As was stated, the most serious aspect to the fire was the burning to death of three persons, who were employees of Craig’s and were occupying the accommodation above the shop. Those who died were: Miss Elizabeth Wilson, a milliner, from Ballinure, Co. Antrim, Miss Georgina Rice, a dressmaker, from Ardee and Mr Alexander Alderdice, aged just nineteen, from Drogheda.

Cause of fire

The fire was malicious. WIndows in Craig’s shop had been smashed and petrol or other combustible liquid or devices had been placed within. This procedure had been carried out at both the front and rear of the premises and the fire commenced at both sides simultaneously. It quickly took control and spread to the two buildings on either side of it. In McGorisk’s the employees in the living quarters above the shop all escaped.

At the time of this horror in Dundalk, similar events were occurring fifty miles away in Belfast, with the commencement of the pogroms in that city.

Extreme loyalists who were endeavouring to put all Catholics out of Belfast and other loyalist areas were burning the homes and premises of firms owned by Catholics. Extremists were carrying out these acts in an attempt to ensure the continuance of British rule in Ireland.

The firms of Craig and Melville were Protestant-owned and for that reason, malicious persons, no better than the mobs of so-called loyalists in Belfast, believed the same should be done to protestants in Dundalk.

Public Revulsion

It was generally believed at the time by the town’s inhabitants that the burning of the three premises was the work of the IRA. The loss of life in Craig’s caused intense indignation throughout County Louth and the neighbouring counties. Most people viewed the tragedy coming so soon after the death of Constable Brennan, as the work of the IRA and that it was in revenge for what was happening in Belfast. Later, on the evening of the day of the fire, the Town Clerk, Mr Comerford, called a public meeting, by poster, for the Town Hall. The purpose of the meeting was “to devise a means of safeguarding the peace of the town”. A large crowd, made up principally of ratepayers and loyalists, attended the meeting. Also in attendance was district inspector Neligan and a party of police, as well as Major Dunbar and some officers from the military barracks.

Republican view of the fire

The following extract is the reaction of Mr James McGuill, the Commanding Officer of North Louth Brigade IRA. he describes the effects the fire had on the Republican movement in County Louth and the surrounding counties in his statement (WS 353) to the Bureau of military History 1913-1921:

“About the time the pogroms started in Belfast and many Catholic houses were burned down by Belfast Unionists, a deputation of British ex-servicemen came to see me seeking permission to burn out a number of non-Catholic houses in Dundalk as a reprisal for the Belfast burnings.

“None of those ex-servicemen had any connection with the IRA and were previously actively hostile to the Republican cause. I took a very firm action with the deputation. I informed them that the IRA would not tolerate any such reprisals and as I was responsible for all the citizens of the town and their property any attempt made to carry out the proposal they made to me would be drastically dealt with and that I would give orders to have any person found guilty of such attempts shot.

“Shortly afterwards an ambush took place in Distillery Lane, Dundalk, in which some members of the Crown forces suffered casualties. Immediately after this operation a mysterious fire took place in a large Protestant drapery establishment named Craig’s, in which three shop assistants lost their lives. This fire and the loss of life caused intense indignation all over the County Louth and neighbouring districts of County Monaghan and County Armagh and coming so soon after the ambush it was looked upon by most people as being done by the IRA.

“ In fact, some individuals who felt sore over what was happening in Belfast came to congratulate me on what they considered a proper reprisal. In this confused situation, Mr Comerford, Town Clerk, whom I have already referred to in the 1916 period - called a public meeting by poster to be held in the Town Hall for the declared purpose of forming a town guard to co-operate with the RIC and the British miliater in preventing future IRA activities.

“This meeting was attended by a big crowd of large ratepayers and loyalists. The district inspector of the RIC and a large force of RIC and some British Army officers were also present.

“I had one of our intelligence officers (IO) at the meeting as I had originally no intention of being present myself as I was on the run, but I wanted to know what was taking place there. Some time after the meeting started my IO came and told me the trend of the speeches made at the meeting, which I was told cast the responsibility for the fire at Craig’s on the IRA.

“As I was in close proximity to the Town Hall I immediately went there, forced my way onto the platform and made a fiery speech disassociating the IRA from having anything to do with the burning of Craig’s. I pointed out that quite recently I was approached by a section of the British ex-servicemen element in town for permission to carry out reprisals in Dundalk for what was happening in Belfast and I said I was forced to threaten the gun on those men to dissuade them.

“I also promised the meeting, as senior officer of the IRA, that I would guarantee the protection of all citizens of the town, if the RIC and the British military were removed. I pointed out that the IRA as Irishmen had more practical interest in the welfare of our citizens than the British garrison could have.

“My speech caused consternation amongst the majority at the meeting and no attempt was made to organise a town guard. I immediately disappeared after the speech. On the following day the Irish Independent gave a report of my speech which, I believe, was deliberately distorted to give the impression that it was a section of the IRA that had broken away from me and then approached me in connection with the burning of non-Catholics houses in Dundalk.

“This report of my alleged speech necessitated a long letter from me to the Independent to clarify the position. The first report, however, had got so much publicity and prominence that it did me a lot of harm in many areas of the county where the true circumstances were not known. My action in publicly announcing the position I had as senior officer of the IRA in Dundalk was not good policy for myself or the IRA organisation’s point of view.

“But the diabolical act which had occurred and of which most people believed the IRA were responsible made it essential that I should disassociate ourselves and give a candid exposition of the affair and this safeguard the good name the IRA always held.

“The IRA intelligence immediately started to investigate the origin of the fire and eventually found that strong suspicions pointed to at least three individuals one of whom left the town shortly after the burning and has since returned and the others left the district.

“Each of the suspected persons was known to be imbued with the teachings of the Russian Revolutionaries. Neither the RIC nor the military authorities in Dundalk made any move as far as I could see to investigate or enquire into this matter.”