American members of the Trimble family made a poignant visit to The Impartial Reporter office this week, marking their first-ever trip to Fermanagh to see the newspaper their ancestor founded.

This special journey, inspired by a Father’s Day gift, allowed Tom Trimble and his family to trace their lineage back to Enniskillen and stand in the very building where their forebear, William Trimble, started The Impartial Reporter nearly 200 years ago.

His great-great-grandfather, James Nevin Trimble, was the brother of William Trimble, the founder and first editor of The Impartial Reporter.

Mr. Trimble always knew of his Irish roots but was thrilled to uncover his ties to Enniskillen and The Impartial Reporter. On Monday morning, standing in the former print works of the newspaper and surrounded by portraits of his ancestors, he remarked, "It’s wonderful to see this."

He was joined by Joanna McVey, his distant relation and a former Managing Director of The Impartial Reporter.

Mr. Trimble travelled with his wife Rita, son Tyler, daughter-in-law Ann, daughter Tory, and son-in-law Brian from Columbus, Ohio, to make the pilgrimage to East Bridge Street, which was once home to the Trimbles.

His children and wife planned the trip to Ireland and Enniskillen as a Father’s Day present for their father.

He added: “We planned it all, and none of us have ever been here before.”

Explaining how the visit came about, Mr. Trimble said: “I reached out specifically to Rodney [Edwards] first, and he then passed that along to Joanna. I corresponded with Joanna and said we’d like to see you and we’d like to come to the paper as we’re going to be in Enniskillen.

“I discovered [the connection] in 1995. A couple of my family members were travelling in Virginia and looked out and saw an art gallery that said Trimble Art Gallery.

“We just went in and talked to the proprietor, and he had a book of Trimble families in America. I found my family, found my father and his father, and traced it all in this book, but I knew before that of my family's connections with Ireland generally.

“I think I knew about Enniskillen particularly, so in the book most of that was confirmed, and I've done some more research. We tracked down the confirmation of The Impartial Reporter and my family's connection with it.”

He says he reads the newspaper occasionally online and he praised its work: “There's so much history, and the fact that this is a just a tremendous paper that wins awards and is doing what journalists are supposed to do. That appeals to me.”

Perhaps the Trimble’s talent for reportage was in the family blood, as Mr. Trimble himself studied journalism briefly.

“I was a journalism major for a while in college, but then I switched to education, and I ended up being a lawyer,” he explained.

The family enjoyed visiting the home where the Trimble family once lived and looking at some historic artefacts from the history of The Impartial Reporter, which will turn 200 years old in 2025.