'Our mother visited his grave twice a day': Murdered RUC man and Second World War veteran Samuel Clarke remembered on 50th anniversary of death at the hands of IRA
Fifty years ago, a loving family was rent asunder by the death of a husband and father at the murderous hands of the IRA.
A Second World War veteran and drum major in a pipe band, Samuel Clarke was fatally shot in a terrorist sniper ambush while on mobile patrol as an RUC reservist in Clonavaddy, a rural part of Co Tyrone between Dungannon and Ballygawley.
A fellow policeman, Sergeant Patrick Maxwell, was also killed, and another officer injured in the same attack.
Aged 53 when he died, Samuel left behind a devastated widow and three children aged 10, 13 and 15; according to the family, his wife never got over his death.
Say his adult children: “Our mother visited the grave just a short distance from our home twice a day.”
Next weekend Samuel is remembered with a special service in the Co Tyrone village of Castlecaulfield, which takes place just two days before the 50th anniversary of his death.
For his family, the date of November 25, 1975 is one that shook their lives forever. With the anniversary approaching rapidly, Reserve Constable Clarke’s children shared memories of their father ahead of the service.
In a joint statement, they said: “Daddy was stolen from us by the actions of Provisional IRA terrorists. On that day our world fell apart; nothing would ever be the same again, and certainty and stability were replaced with uncertainty.
“Daddy was always in uniform, having left home at just 16 years old to join the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. He served in World War Two, he had a strong sense of doing the right thing and of making a contribution in pursuance of a better world.
“On May 1, 1954, he joined the Ulster Special Constabulary, where he was a Sergeant Instructor; he covered all of Tyrone, where he was well known and loved and respected.”
He joined the RUC Reserve in January 1971, as the Troubles entered their most violent period. Serving in the Dungannon area, he was wounded in an ambush on the Dungannon to Ballygaywley Road around 20 months before the fatal republican sniper attack.
Their mother was herself an RUC Reservist and heroically continued to serve after her husband’s killing, pushing through the grief of his death while also bringing up three children alone.
“She was an incredibly strong lady to still feel the conviction to play her part, whilst trying to raise us also,” they said.
Samuel’s children remember a man with lots of interests beyond policing, in particular recalling his passion for the Howard Memorial Pipe Band, for whom he was a drum major.
“He had a zest for life, and there was no justification for his murder,” they stated. “Our Daddy mattered to us and many others, both colleagues and friends.
“There were alternatives; people chose to eliminate him, it was never their right to do so.”
Next Sunday morning’s service in Castlecaulfield Church of Ireland is being facilitated by the family with victim support group SEFF, along with the East Tyrone branch of the RUC George Cross Foundation.
Said SEFF director Kenny Donaldson: “These men were murdered carrying out their duties as public servants on behalf of the entire community.”
Mr Donaldson added that while the service is in memory of Samuel, Sergeant Patrick Maxwell will be mentioned and his family is expected to attend.