THROUGH THE ARCHIVES: Council agrees to committee’s recommendation to purchase steam-rollers for Tyrone

From the News Letter, March 19, 1903

The adjourned quarterly meeting of the Tyrone County Council had been held the previous day, reported the News Letter on this day in 1903, at Omagh Courthouse with His Grace the Duke of Abercorn, KG, presiding.

An important decision about the purchase of a number of steam-rollers and other accessories were put forward by the council’s Finance Committee wrote the paper’s correspondent.

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The council was advised that they should purchase a ten-ton steam-roller, water-cart and travelling van, stone-crusher traction for the rural district of Castlederg, and a ten-ton steam-roller, with a Morrison’s scarifier attached, water-cart and travelling van for the rural district of Strabane No 1.

Speaking during the debate Mr George Murnaghan, MP, said that he had no objections to this being done so long as Strabane paid for it.

Mr James Corr raised concerns that the cost of the steam-rollers should only be incurred by the rural district in which they were used and not across the county council as a whole.

Mr Miller added it would be too bad if they [in Strabane] had to pay for the steam-roller in the southern division and for the entire cost of their own roller as well.

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Mr J B Gunning-Moore suggested that the county council could look at hiring out the steam-rollers “and the cost of hiring could be regulated to cover the cost to the county”. On a vote being taken the recommendation was approved by the council.

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