Biography

John "Jackie" Stephen McClelland BEM (14 October 1923 - 13 April 1981) was a firefighter and councilor from Newry, Northern Ireland who served from 1940 until 1975.

Life

A son of a World War I Veteran, McClelland grew up in St Patrick's Avenue of Newry and by the age of 17, he and his older brother James were serving in Coventry and Birmingham during the German blitz of World War II.^[1]

Upon returning to Northern Ireland, McClelland joined the Auxiliary Fire Service in Belfast shortly before it was nationalized. Returning to his hometown, he joined the Newry Depot, which was now under the control of the Northern Ireland Fire Authority, and was Section leader as early as his 19th birthday in 1942.^[2] Sometime in the 1960s, he was made Sub Officer of Newry Station and later fire Chief of Newry.

In 1965 McClelland received a Long Service medal ^[3] and 1972, McClelland was awarded a British Empire Medal by Queen Elizabeth II^[4] cited "For his courage, leadership, and devotion to duty."

A year later, during the height of The Troubles, McClelland was severely injured whilst attending a callout in Newtownhamilton on 26 October 1973, when a bomb exploded in O'Malley's furniture store.^[5][6] He lost parts of multiple fingers and several feet of intestine, and sustained holes in his bladder and injuries to his leg.^[7][8] He was forced to retire from active duty and by 1975 had left the organization completely. In 1981, Jackie died from intestinal cancer. On his death, he was described by all parties of the council chambers as "A great servant to the people, both as a Fire Officer and a Councillor but also a Newry man through and through. He was a genuine representative of the working class of Newry and worked tirelessly at great personal cost to improve the quality of life for all his constituents." A man who "throughout his life was committed to peace and reconcillation."^[9]

Legacy

The McClelland name in the Newry and Mourne area is synonymous with firefighting.^[10] Five of McClellands six sons went on to serve in the Fire Service, along with a grandson. His son, also John, was the Chief Fire Officer of the Northern Ireland Fire Brigade from 1996 to 2002.^[11]

in the 90s, Dennison Commercials, a local Volvo dealer that sold and maintained the appliances for the Newry Fire Station commissioned local artist, Cora Harrington to paint a set of 3 paintings to be displayed in the fire station representing the different eras of firefighting in the Newry and Mourne area. Sub-Officer McClelland is depicted commanding a blaze in the picture entitled "Troubled Times," using a reference from an older photo. two of his granddaughters also make cameo appearances watching on.

In 2002, a park in Newry on Edward Street, a short distance from both the old and new Fire Station was developed on the location of the defunct RUC base, "McClelland Park" was named in his honour.^[12]

References