Portora Royal

Portora is a very old school, dating back to the 1600's and is one of a series of original Royal Schools scattered about Ireland. Dungannon Royal, the school Roger had attended in 1970. Cavan Royal, the school Dad attended when he was a boy, Royal School Armagh, and the Royal and Prior School in Donegal. Its rich history did little to impress me, and I found myself taking advantage of the Erne river for fishing, and watching the pleasure boats go by.

Enniskillen differed from Sligo significantly. I never had to pass through security checkpoints and get patted down in Sligo. I did when I went into Wellworths for the first time in Enniskillen, but I understood the reason. That inconvenience went away, but the concrete barriers and troop patrols remained a fixture of life there for a long, long time.

In 1994 I wrote to the headmaster of Portora asking about Charlie Berardi, Sammy McElroy, and David Broadhurst. I received word that they had no information about David, that Sammy might be working as an accountant of some sort in England, and that Charlie left Portora in 1981 - the same year I did - to pursue a carreer in the United States Army. I've since been in contact with Charles, as well as James Neill, Michael Hayes, and several others.

I returned to Enniskillen in June, 2001 and went to visit the old school. Gloucester House had been bull-dozed to make way for a housing estate, but outwardly I did not see much difference in the main school though I confess I did not spend a great deal of time scouring the grounds.

Enniskillen had also changed considerably. The security barriers had been replaced with tree-lined side-streets and cafes, and all around was a sense of hope. Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonalds, and a Duncan Donuts - what a difference to my day!

I was last in Enniskillen in 2006 on my way back from visiting Sligo. I did not, howerver, stop.

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