A NEW vessel which will used to navigate Lough Erne and was built by volunteers from both Fermanagh and Cavan hasn’t just delighted two communities but one local family.

The Lough Erne cot was constructed as part of an EU-funded cross-Border project and was launched last week at Crom Castle by Tourism Minister Arlene Foster and Heather Humphreys, the Minister for Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht in the Republic of Ireland.

The traditional craft will now be used to enhance the visitor experience at the castle and the surrounding Crom Estate. But for Noel Johnston, Crom’s estate manager, the launch was full of nostalgia as he reflected on how the old vessel played a significant role in his family.

“Growing up as a boy on the Crom estate the Lough Erne cot played a big part in my life. From the age of four my grandmother Hannah Graham used to row the cot to church on a Sunday morning,” Mr. Johnston told The Impartial Reporter.

His grandfather James Graham was the ferry man on the Crom Estate in the early 1900s and part of his job was to bring children over to Crom School, located at Corlatt.

“To go to Corlatt by road it would take up to an hour while crossing the lake only took five minutes. The children from Derryvore, Crom and Bleanish travelled on the Lough Erne cot to school. My great grandfather Henry and my great uncle Billy were also ferry men,” he explained.

Violet Johnston (nee Graham), his mother, was one of the last pupils to travel by cot before the school closed in 1954. After it closed the cot was used to ferry people on the estate along with the Earl of Erne and his family to Holy Trinity Church at Crom.

“Indeed, the old cot was used for my four sisters’ weddings and the Earl of Erne’s daughters’ weddings to take them across the lake to the church for the ceremony. It was a way of life for all of us who lived on the estate and we are all very proud of this,” he said.

Mr. Johnston explained that the cot had been built by his great uncle Billy along with other families who lived on the estate and is now over 100 years old. And he said he was delighted to get the opportunity to rebuild a new cot for the castle thanks to Peace III funding, Cavan County Council, Cavan Men’s Shed and South East Fermanagh Foundation.

“The new cot will be a great asset to us at the castle both in tourism and business in our wedding sector. And as Lord Erne always says; you have not seen Crom unless you have been on the lake. Now we can give all our holiday makers and guests this unique opportunity,” he said.

Speaking at the launch, Minister Foster said the cot highlights the growing tourist potential of Fermanagh’s cultural heritage.

Joined by her southern counterpart Heather Humphreys and Lord Crichton, the son of Lord Erne, Minister Foster said: “The counties of Fermanagh and Cavan, the Lough Erne systems, and indeed Crom Castle itself, are deeply connected to the traditional cot, which has a rich and diverse heritage”.

“The new Lough Erne Cot therefore creates another exciting dimension to the attractions that visitors to Fermanagh and Crom Castle will be able to experience. The rich culture and heritage of Fermanagh has the potential to attract many more tourists to the area.

“With our great historic houses, castles and gardens to visit allied to a strong pre-Christian and Christian heritage, alongside our special landscapes and the waterways themselves; there is vast potential to appeal to sightseers and culture seekers,” she said.