Strabane: ‘Father of New York subway’ honoured in hometown

Alexander Ector Orr, who is best known for helping finance and arrange construction of New York’s subway system, has been honoured in his hometown of Strabane.

Mr Orr became a successful businessman in the US following his emigration from the island of Ireland in the 1850s, at the age of 19.

He played a key role in the foundation of the initial 9.1 mile-long subway line, from City Hall in Lower Manhattan to 145th Street in Harlem, which eventually opened to the public on 27 October 1904.

A blue plaque was unveiled in Mr Orr’s honour on Wednesday on the Credit Union building in the Bowling Green area of Strabane by the Ulster History Circle.

Chris Spurr, chairman of the Ulster History Circle, described Mr Orr as the “Father of the New York subway”.

The network serves four of the five boroughs of New York and serves millions of passengers daily, making it one of the busiest rapid transit systems in the world.

Maud Hamill, from the Ulster History Circle, said Mr Orr, like many others at the time, left these shores in search of his fortune in America.

“Many people have sadly never heard of him, I was actually the person who nominated him after hearing about him,” she told BBC News NI.

“His house in Strabane is sadly gone as it was demolished many years ago, but the plaque was placed on the Credit Union building which was very close to his original home.”

Ms Hamill said there were now six blue plaques in Strabane.

“Strabane certainly has a lot of talent and is certainly well represented,” she added.

Deputy mayor of Derry City and Strabane Darren Guy, who was at the unveiling, said the blue plaque was a “wonderful way to celebrate our links with the US” and “highlight the important role many local people played in the foundation of the nation”.

He said Alexander Ector Orr “should be remembered here in his home town where I hope more people will now find out about his significant achievements”.

Mr Orr is one of five individuals to be commemorated in the second series of Ulster History Circle blue plaques to be funded by Derry City and Strabane Council.