ON Thursday the 21st of March, members of the Tom Dunn Society and Tom Dunn Project gathered in the Cloughmór Inn, Rostrevor to pay tribute to Dr Mary McAleese, President of Ireland, 1997-2011, for her support of Tom Dunn initiatives over many decades. Tom Dunn was a hedge schoolteacher and United Irishman who died as a result of a flogging in 1798.
Proceedings began with Dr McAleese being piped into the Cloughmór Inn, bedecked with United Irishmen flags, by David Hanna, Pipe Major of Altnaveigh Memorial Pipe Band. After being welcomed by proprietors, Gerard and Kathleen Tinnelly, David played a medley of stirring tunes. This was followed by three songs from the 1798 period by members of Cór na nÓg Caisleán Ruairí, directed by Rós Ní Dubháin, to the musical accompaniment of Siubhán Ó Dubháin, artistic director of the Tom Dunn Society. Siubhán was the pioneer and has been the main driving force of the Tom Dunn Society.
Her work inspired members of the Tom Dunn Project to seek to erect a permanent memorial to his memory. Danny McGreevy played a number of tunes on the Uileann pipes, including An Droichead (The Bridge) that was composed for Mary McAleese’s inauguration as President of Ireland.
Dr McAleese then signed a copy of her speech from the day of the unveiling of the Tom Dunn statue. It will be put on permanent display in the Cloughmór Inn alongside an exhibition of Tom Dunn related material already there, as well as commemorative photos. This was followed by a book presentation, a pictorial record of the Tom Dunn Project, by award winning photographer, Denis Brady.
Denis was its vice-chair. A proud Presbyterian, he has been involved in outreach work all his life and he is a staunch advocate that people should enlighten themselves about their history.
The final part of official proceedings was a presentation of a unique miniature statue of Tom Dunn to Dr McAleese by Dr Rory Harron, sculptor of the Tom Dunn statue that was unveiled in Rostrevor Square in September 2023.
