Tributes paid to one of Omagh’s best known businessmen

SEVERAL hundred people attended the funeral of one of Omagh’s most prominent and colourful businessmen of the past 50 years.

Lawrence McSwiggan, of Erganagh Road, died recently aged 81. His Requiem Mass took place at Sacred Heart Church, Omagh.

Mr McSwiggan will be best remembered as the owner of a successful chain of local bookmakers and as a notable punter throughout the 1970s.

Once described as ‘Omagh’s main bookmaker’, he operated premises in John Street, Old Market Place and Campsie.

His NIIB business thrived for more than three decades before being sold to BoyleSports almost ten years ago.

A successful punter himself, Mr McSwiggan was involved in a high-profile 1978 court case alongside Irvinestown’s Barney Curley, who at the time was one of Ireland’s most successful bookmakers.

Mr McSwiggan claimed Curley owed him £90,000 on a five-horse accumulator placed with a £60 stake. However, the court ultimately ruled in Curley’s favour regarding the disputed winnings.

Born in the Glenelly Valley, Mr McSwiggan had a lifelong interest in horses and fishing. He once held an involvement with Rhyme n’ Reason, the horse which shocked the racing world by winning the 1988 Grand National. A keen angler, he also regularly fished waters near Douglas Bridge.

In addition to his business and sporting interests, he was a generous supporter of local charities and community events.

He sponsored competitions at Omagh Golf Club and was a longstanding supporter of Omagh St Enda’s GAA, of which he was a lifelong member.

Paying tribute, Omagh St Enda’s said, “Lawrence was a fine snooker player in our old and current facilities, a benefactor behind the scenes and a genuinely big supporter over the years.

“Lawrence, who was married to Una, an All-Ireland Scor winner herself with St Enda’s, was always a key supporter of our club in his quiet and unassuming way.”

Mr McSwiggan was pre-deceased by his daughter Marie and is survived by his wife Una (née Deveney), daughters Sara, Suzanne and Clare, brother Tom and sisters Moira and Cecelia. He was also pre-deceased by his brothers Daniel and Raymond.