Carlingford prepares for President Joe Biden to visit - the village of his ancestral roots
UTV visits the town of Carlingford as excitement and anticipation grows ahead of President Joe Biden's planned visit to the town from which his ancestors came
Joe Biden will visit the small Irish town of Carlingford during his four-day visit to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
During his time in the country, he will visit Carlingford - located in northeast Ireland, close to the border with Northern Ireland.
Carlingford, one of the Emerald Isle's best-preserved medieval towns, is the place from whence President Biden's ancestors were born.
The town has been preparing for his visit with US flags appearing throughout the area and locals going to many lengths to welcome him back.
One local, Eamonn Thorn, told UTV: "It's a small area and you can imagine what people think as one of their own.
"My own great-great-grandparents would have been in the same era as Joe Biden's great-great grandparents - they would have lived up, been raised together, you know.
"So it has special memories for the whole area."
A visiting American told UTV: "It's a good feeling to have a president with roots in Ireland. We do as well.
"We are from a community in the US where there are lots of Irish that live there or people with family from Ireland. So we are very proud of him."
President Biden is expected to land on the same peninsula where his ancestors, the Finnegans of Whitestown, just outside Carlingford - the family left their homeland for a better life in America.
Carlingford Heritage Trust's Yvonne Keenan-Ross told UTV: "His ancestors literally sailed down the loch to go to America.
"They were from Whitestown, down the road and it's only back as far as his great-great-grandfather and his great-great-grandmother.
"And his great-great-grandmother had his great-grandfather with her on the boat to America.
"So it's like the Irish fairytale - you never imagine your ancestors leaving and then the American President is going to come back as an Irish man that left all those years ago."
One of Joe Biden's relatives through the Finnegan family told UTV what it was like to meet his fifth cousin in a pub in 2016.
John Finnegan said: "We were taken to Lily Finnegans, a pub in Whitestown where his people are from. Then he came in as if he were one of the lads.
"Someone said 'welcome to Ireland Joe' and he said 'you mean welcome home'."
US helicopters also touched down on a local football this week as excitement throughout the town ahead of the US leader's arrival continues to grow.
President Biden also plans to visit the town of Ballina in County Mayo in connection to his roots.
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