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TWO Tyrone groups have been awarded funded to create projects marking the 250th anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence.
This year marks the landmark anniversary of the document which set in motion the American Revolution.
There are several strong Tyrone links to the Declaration of Independence, including Strabane-born John Dunlap, who printed the first copies of the document.
Among the signatories of the declaration was Edward Rutledge, whose father emigrated from Tyrone in 1735.
To mark the anniversary, Bready & District Ulster-Scots Development Association has been awarded £20,000 to create The Unfinished Broadside – a new theatrical performance telling the story of Ulster-Scots migration and the role of Ulster people in the American Revolution.
Donaghmore Historical Society has been awarded £14,200 to create Donaghmore to the New World: Ulster Links to the Spirit of 1776.
This will explore the historic links between Ulster and America by looking at connections through trade and emigration leading to an exhibition, an illustrated booklet and a schools resource and digital map.
The two local groups are among a range of organisations across the North who have received funding from the Department of Communities to mark the anniversary.
The Ulster American Folk Park in Omagh is also set to host a series of events connected to the signing of the declaration.
Communities Minister Gordon Lyons said: “The key roles played by those from Northern Ireland in the formation of the United States have become much more clearly understood on both sides of the Atlantic in the last few years.
“The USANI250 funding scheme, administered by the Ulster-Scots Agency, clearly shows the breadth and depth of those links, and how they continue today.”
