By 
REMEMBERED as a ‘likeable’ and ‘quiet’ man who was held in high esteem by all who knew him, Joe McCallan, a former resident of Alexander Place, Sion Mills, has passed away at his home in Enfield, Middlesex, at the age of 88 following a long illness.
The last of a family of five brothers – all popular sportsmen from Tyrone – Mr McCallan is survived by his wife Anne, two sons, Paul and Neil, and his cousin Margaret Patton, who still resides in Sion Mills.
Having left Sion Mills in the early 1960s, Mr McCallan moved to London and took up employment at the world-famous auction house Sotheby’s, where he worked until his retirement at the age of 60.
Hugo McCorkell, a dear friend and neighbour who grew up with Mr McCallan, recalled many fond memories and said the pair always stayed in touch.
“We attended Sion Mills Primary School together,” Mr McCorkell said. “The unique thing about the school in those days was that it was all mixed -boys, girls, Catholics and Protestants all attended together.”
Like many young people from the area, both men worked at Herdman’s Flax Spinning Mill before moving to England.
“I moved to Manchester in 1960, and Joe moved to London a year or two later,” said Mr McCorkell. “There were three or four families from Sion Mills who went to England around that time, and we always stayed in touch and would regularly visit each other.”
Mr McCorkell remembered Mr McCallan as a good footballer and a passionate Manchester United supporter.
“He played for both Sion Mills and Coleraine, and he idolised Duncan Edwards,” he said. “The McCallan family were all great sportspeople in their time.”
“Joe was a very likeable, quiet person who was held in high esteem by all who knew him,” he added. “He will be missed very much by his family and friends.”
