On This Day / June 30, 1921
Go BackReproduced with permission from The Irish News.
June 30, 2021
Publication Date
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Summary: On This Day – 30th June 1921, Belfast inquests examined deaths from recent rioting, including Special Constable Thomas Sturdy, Hugh McAree, William Frazer and Kathleen Collins. Edited by Éamon Phoenix.
Belfast Murder Inquests | On This Day – 30th June 1921
DR GRAHAM, City Coroner, and a jury held inquests yesterday in the City Hall touching the death of Special Constable Thomas Sturdy, late of Court Street barracks and others shot during the recent rioting.
District Inspectors Deignan, McConnell and Armstrong represented the Crown.
A sergeant gave evidence that he was on duty in Garmoyle Street at about 9 p.m. on 12th June.
There had been sniping earlier in the evening. There was also revolver firing by civilians.
A number of Special Constabulary arrived in a motor lorry. They entered a house in Garmoyle Street and remained there for some time.
About 9.30 p.m. they proceeded in the direction of Dock Lane. Sturdy was a short distance in the rear.
On approaching Dock Lane there was a report of a revolver. Deceased staggered and fell. The constable died shortly after admission to the RVH.
The jury returned a verdict of wilful murder against some person unknown during the course of a riot.
The next case taken was that of Hugh McAree (30), an ex-soldier who resided at Sackville Street.
A head constable, who was on duty at Conway Street on 14th June said there was a disturbance and some sniping. An excited crowd collected.
A civilian said McAree rushed onto the road to help the little boy Frazer who had been shot. He was shot by some person who was ‘spotting’.
The shots came from the back of the houses and from the Falls Road direction.
Regarding the death of the 12-old boy, William Frazer of Mayo Street {Shankill Rd] a sergeant said that in Ashmore Street (a Unionist district) some shots were fired.
With regard to the death of Kathleen Collins (19) of Cupar Street, deceased’s mother said she had just returned from work for dinner and deceased, who was unemployed, went to the door.
Witness heard her say, ‘Ma, I am shot.’
A girl said she was standing at her own door in Cupar Street when at 1.10 four lorries of Special Constables passed down the Falls Road. Witness heard four or five shots.
She saw that the deceased girl and Mrs Rafferty had been wounded. There was no disorderly crowd at the time.
The officer in charge of Special Constables said as the lorries were passing Dunville Park shots were fired at them.
The fire was replied to, altogether about fourteen shots being fired.
(Éamon Phoenix editor’s note: THE authors of a recent work on The Dead of the Irish Revolution note that Belfast had the highest incidence of civilian deaths In Ireland during 1920-22 with 450 dead in the city in these two tragic years.)
On This Day – 30th June 1921
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
On This Day is a daily column in the Irish News looking back either 50 or 100 years. The column was compiled by Dr Éamon Phoenix from the mid 1980s until autumn, 2022. The Foundation is very grateful to the Irish News for giving permission to reproduce Eamon’s columns. Funding gratefully received from Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and the Magill Trust.
* The Foundation has worked hard to recreate Eamon’s distinctive voice through AI. Since this is an emerging technology, occasional imperfections may be audible.