McClure’s Shop & Crossview House

Robert McClure was born in 1868 and is listed in the 1901 Census as a “Justice of the Peace, Grocer and Provision Merchant.” He lived in Crossview House with his wife Lizzie, sons Charles James, and John, and daughters Frances Ann, Lizzie, Hebert Maude and Margaret Jane. His younger brother David, a grocer’s apprentice also lived in the house, along with servants Thomas Henry McKee, William McConnell, Annie McMenamin and Maggie Boyce.

In 1899, Robert ran for a seat in the newly established Urban Council but was unsuccessful on this occasion. He did get elected in 1909 though and held his seat on the Council for over 10 years. In later years, he bought and ran Hegarty’s Hotel (now the Market Centre).

The legacy of the McClures in Letterkenny is preserved in the naming of McClure’s Terrace (which connects the High Road to Ard O’Donnell by a walking thoroughfare) and fittingly located around the corner from their original shop and home.