Work

After I left school, I worked in Raymond Beck's Surveyors office located on Market Street, opposite Scarffes Entry, Omagh for a couple of years. The work mostly consisted of drawing house plans and doing site surveys. I started at a pound a week and when I left it had worked up to two pounds. I thought that I was made up when I started in the Education Offices in the late 1960s at five pounds a week. It was the Tyrone County Education Committee then. I stayed there for several years and went to the Northern Ireland Housing Executive for a few years but I yearned to get back to Campsie House and re-applied for what was my former job. I was lucky enough to get back in and there was a name change to the Western Education and Library Board. I carried my public service right through and got nearly the full term for work pension. Although I liked the work, things got more demanding throughout the years and I took early retirement in 2002. I keep myself active now through photography and getting out and about as much as I can. Since I left WELB, the five Education boards have become the one Education Authority.

Western Education and Library Board

The Western Education and Library Board (WELB) in Northern Ireland is the local authority for the provision of education, library and youth services in the Council areas of Omagh, Fermanagh, Derry / Londonderry, Strabane and Limavady. It is located at 1 Hospital Road, Omagh BT79 0AW

It was the home of the Fleming family until the 1950s when it was sold to the Tyrone County Education Committee

There is a memorial to Hans Fleming MD in a stained glass window at St.Columbas Church of Ireland - see H4472 : Memorial windows, St Columbas Church, Omagh

Another relative of the Flemings was Sub Lieut. Anthony Hastings Bennett whose memorial plaque is also in the same church - see H4472 : Sub Lieut. Anthony Hastings Bassett plaque

Memories, Tyrone County Education Committee Offices

They are located at Campsie House, Hospital Road, Omagh, and now headquarters of the Western Education and Library Board. There was always a lot of craic and things changed a lot throughout the years but and one humorous incident that comes to mind when I was there in my early working life (and there was many) is as follows. I can remember people left their cars in the car park with the keys in the ignition and this would have been in the late 1960s One them included my former boss, Mr William Boggs, Senior Maintenance Officer, and long since deceased. It was a thing that people did in those days and never gave it a second thought; after all who would come in and steal your car? After several incidents in the town in the early part of the troubles, people started to get more security conscious, and a memo was circulated round the office with recommendations including the taking of measures when car parking. There was a fire drill for the offices and the assembly point was in the assembly hall of the adjoining Omagh High School and Mr Boggs organised the drill. This necessitated us going through the gate at the rear of the premises and past a row of parked cars, including Mr Bogg's car, which was not locked and had the keys in the ignition and some one noticed this and took the keys and went over to the hall with the intention of giving them to its owner, who was deeply engrossed in his "Captain Mainwaring" role. However this nameless person happened to have a yarn with several bright sparks from our department and mentioned the fact that he had the car keys, so planning a bit of devilment and when the drill was over, they came back through to the offices and past the then chief's office (Mr Andy Gibson) and anonymously placed the keys on his desk with a note giving a clue as to their owner. Mr Boggs was quickly summonsed to see the chief and when he came back to the maintenance office he was livid and we were all trying to keep straight faces. He did his best to find out the culprit, and I suppose that none of us were guiltless but there was a conspiracy of silence and he never did find out.

Some changes in Campsie House from when the Fleming family lived there, in the attached link are: A, attic window removed, B, former stained glass window over staircase, C, porch with veranda removed, and re-built section after bomb in early part of the troubles.

Now for some old pictures!