Belfast's ill-fated Grand Canal

SELECTED EXTRACTS FROM GEORGE BENN'S HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BELFAST (1877)

DONEGALL PLACE runs from 36 Castle Place to Donegall Square North.

In 1784 there was an advertisement for a plan of an intended new street leading from 36 Castle Place to the White Linen Hall (now City Hall, Donegall Square).

This new street, known as Linen Hall Street, was intended for private dwellings of the wealthy inhabitants of the town.

The leading gentry had exclusive possession, Lord Donegall's own house being at the corner of the new street.

A more detailed account of the opening of Donegall Place, through the old castle's gardens, has been put on record:-

"June 3rd 1785.  The ground for building the new street from our White Linen Hall to the Parade [Castle Place] is now thrown open, and brick and other materials for the work laid down ..."

"The entrance from the Parade to the right and left will be finely introduced by elegant iron pallisading and adequate globe stands raised from clean brick walls coped with free stone on front of Lord Donegall's and the Collector's houses curving beautifully towards the northern ends of each."

"The new buildings to commence at the southern extremity of said pallisading, and run forward to the banks of the intended canal which is to pass in front of the Linen Hall, and so separate the said street from that great building, the view of which forms a pleasant termination  to the south." 

"A drawbridge will be thrown across  the canal in front of the Linen Hall, and another range of buildings incline to the east along the banks of the canal quay." 

"The new street [Donegall Place] to be 80 feet wide ..."

Chart dated 1796 from Benn's History of Belfast. Click to Enlarge

These grand schemes were not executed, except the construction of Donegall Place.

The beautiful pallisading and the adequate globe stands were left to be perfected by the next generation, the members of which appear to have neglected the duty ... but, above all, the intended canal with its quay and drawbridge never went beyond a paper representation. 

To that extent the canal, passing in front of the Linen Hall, is shown on maps of the period; so certain did its completion appear that the sanguine map-maker imagined he might safely stamp it as an accomplished fact.

Queen's Arcade, Belfast

Queen's Arcade: Donegall Place entrance in 2024 (Timothy Ferres)

QUEEN'S ARCADE, Belfast, runs from Donegall Place to Fountain Street.

Queen's Arcade: Fountain Street entrance in 2024 (Timothy Ferres)

Marcus Patton OBE, in his invaluable Central Belfast: A Historical Gazetteer, provides this apt description:-

Long shopping arcade from Donegall Place to Fountain Street, built in 1880 for George Fisher of the Castle Restaurant to designs by James MacKinnon, with new shopfronts inserted 1932 by Sage of London.

Two-storey arcade with pitched, glazed roof carried on perforated iron trusses with pannelled barrel soffits; first-floor windows semicircular with spoke divisions; cornice above first floor with richly-carved floral ornament.

A stone door-case survives near the Donegall Place entrance. 

New canopies added at both ends ca 1987.

In 1890 it was described as "at once fashionable as a promenade and highly attractive as a business thoroughfare," containing "upwards of thirty finely fitted shops;" but the existing shops are all modern.

The Queen's Café  bar has operated in the Arcade continuously since 1901.

A monogram "AR" on third floor level at the Donegall Place facade alludes to Austin Reed Ltd, which came to the arcade in 1935.

At the apex of the gable is a fanciful model of a fantasy castle, possibly an allusion to the original Belfast Castle which stood across the street.

Donegall Place Entrance

HERE is a list of the tenants in 1910, including five milliners, two tailors, one confectioner's shop and one café:-

1-3   Wm Dickson & Co, Manufacturers of Umbrellas & Walking-Sticks

5      The Irish Art Depot ~ Miss S Burke

7-9   The Queen's Linen Company

11    Mrs Smith, Milliner

13    The Ulster Dairy Company

15    Miss Holmes, Milliner

17    P F Gulbransen, Watchmaker

19    Ladies' Blouse Depot ~ Miss Spence

21-23   Letitia Mayes, Milliner

25    Mills' Lending Library

27-29   Mrs Snugg, Milliner

31   S Bamford, Merchant Tailor

*************

2    Side door

4-6     The Queen's Café

8-10   Miss Hanna, Costumier and Ladies' Tailor

12       S I Cronne, Milliner

14     The Vienna Photographic Art Co ~ W L Allison, proprietor

16     Miss Nicholson, Boot, Shoe & Slipper Warehouse

18     Universal Knitting Machine Company

20     Howden & P H Charley ~ Coal Merchants

22     Miss Beresford, Milliner

24     North of Ireland Loan Bank ~ J Lamont, Manager

26     Miss Mary Bill, Confectioner

Let us hope that Mrs Snugg lived up to her name.

First published in October, 2012.

Terrace Hill House

TERRACE HILL HOUSE was located in the townland of Ballynahatty, Edenderry, on the outskirts of Belfast.

It was close to Minnowburn, now a property of the National Trust.

Frederick Russell (1811-76) was Terrace Hill's first owner, having been brought up at Edenderry House.

The original house of ca 1856 was said to have been commodious, with servants' quarters.

At least as early as 1780 there was a bleach-green in Edenderry which belonged to John Russell, but in the 1830s the Russell family gave up linen bleaching and converted their premises into a flour mill drawn by water power. At this period (1780) the Russells, later associated with Newforge, were settled at Edenderry.

When Russell died, Terrace Hill House was briefly occupied by a family called Ferguson before becoming the home of Matthew Coates, who lived there with his wife ca 1898.

Freddy’s Steps were first constructed by Frederick Russell in late 1800s and are the most direct route to Terrace Hill viewpoint at Minnowburn.

In the County Down land deeds of 1876, "Frederick Russell, address Ballynahatty, Newtownbreda, owned 18 acres." 

Several years later, in the early 20th century, Terrace Hill was purchased by Edward (Ned) Robinson, proprietor of the Robinson & Cleaver's department store in Belfast.

When Robinson sold his interest in the store he demolished Terrace Hill House and, in 1936, built a new residence (still called Terrace Hill).

It was designed by the architects Young & Mackenzie.

Terrace Hill House is surrounded by lawns, gardens and a swimming pool, and was occupied by Mr Robinson until his death in 1947.

In the 1980s, it was a residential home for children.

The farm buildings, now the National Trust warden's office, were the base for Minnowburn Youth Farm.

The house was for sale in October, 2014, and now has a new owner.

Robinson & Cleaver's Royal Irish Linen Warehouse, Donegall Square North, was built 1886-88 by Young and Mackenzie. It used to be one of Belfast's finest department stores. Fifty heads of the store's erstwhile patrons still pop out of the exterior, including Queen Victoria and the Maharajah of Cooch Behar.

First published in February, 2011.

Clarence Street West

Clarence Street West, Belfast, runs from 17 Bedford Street to McClintock Street.

It was formerly a cul-de-sac, dating from about 1880.

During the mid-20th century, 4 Clarence Street West served as the premises of Stanley Harvey & Co, automobile engineers and Rolls-Royce dealers.

Later, it became a ten-pin bowling alley called the Belfast Superbowl.

In 2008, this garage was demolished and replaced by Radisson Hotels' Park Inn.

The hotel reopened in 2025 as a Moxy Hotel.

First published in September, 2012.

Belfast Cathedral Design

Belfast Cathedral ~ the Cathedral Church of Saint Anne in Belfast ~ is a relatively recent ecclesiastical building.

Construction began, in fact, during the end of Queen Victoria's reign.

Belfast itself is of relatively recent growth; unlike, for instance, ancient cathedral cities like Canterbury, York, or Dublin.

The Cathedral's foundation stone was laid down in 1899 by the Countess of Shaftesbury, and blessed by the Rt Rev Thomas Welland, Lord Bishop of Down, Connor and Dromore.

The last public service in the original St Anne's parish church was held on the 31st December, 1903, prior to demolition.

Sir Thomas Drew's original design

The nave of the new cathedral church was, in fact, built around the old church of 1776.

St Anne's Parish Church was provided at the sole expense of the landlord of the town, Arthur, 1st Marquess of Donegall. The traditional name by which the church should have been called was St Patrick's, but the noble donor wished to honour the name of his first wife (née the Lady Anne Hamilton, daughter of James, 5th Duke of Hamilton) and so it was dedicated in the name of SAINT ANNE, the mother of the Virgin Mary.

The Cathedral chapter, board and vestry had ambitious plans for the new cathedral.

It was intended to build a lady chapel at the east end of the cathedral, 76 feet long and 30 feet wide, terminating at an apse with a domed roof.

The present apse constitutes the eastern end of the cathedral, though the lady chapel was intended to accommodate a congregation of about 200 people with a small chamber organ.

CLICK TO ENLARGE ~ Architectural Design for Completion

A TOWER was also planned (or proposed), rising to a pinnacle and linked to the north-east side of the Cathedral by a covered cloister and vestibule.

It was to be 210 feet in height, twice the height of the nave's roof.

At its base, the Tower was to have an exterior measurement of 40 feet square, progressively stepped down to 32 feet square.

The lower portion of the Tower was intended to serve as a Chapter House.

This tower was to house a campanile or bell chamber, 24 feet square, and containing a grand peal of bells.

The lady chapel and the tower are two primary features which were abandoned.

In 2007, a stainless steel pinnacle, 130 feet in height, was installed on top of the cathedral.

It was named the "Spire of Hope".

The structure can be illuminated at night.

The base section of the pinnacle protrudes through a glass platform in the cathedral's roof directly above the choir stalls, allowing visitors to view it from the nave.

First published in September, 2014.

Belvoir House: 1914

Belvoir House, East Elevation

These pictures were taken at Belvoir Park, Newtownbreda, County Down, in 1914 by Grace de Pesters-MacColl, Raoul de Pesters’ grandmother.

Mr de Pesters has kindly provided me with the images.

The top picture shows Belvoir House (today the site of the car-park) from the eastern side.

The retaining wall (which still exists) can clearly be seen, with sweeping parkland below.

The image below is an aspect of Belvoir from the north-east.

I HAVE WRITTEN at length about Belvoir House and estate, which was once home to nobility, gentry and merchants..

In 1900 Walter Wilson leased Belvoir from Lord Deramore.

*****

WALTER HENRY WILSON JP (1839-1904), of Maryville, and of Cranmore, Belfast, married Sarah Elizabeth, eldest daughter and co-heir of James Owen Wynne, of Hazelwood.

In 1900, Mr Wilson took a 20 year lease of Belvoir Park from Lord Deramore.

Mr Wilson, a shipbuilder, was partner in the Belfast shipyard, Harland and Wolff, with Lord Pirrie.

His first marital home was at 1 Botanic Avenue, Belfast. Mr Wilson subsequently rented Stranmillis House, prior to leasing Belvoir.

He subsequently purchased Cranmore House, adjacent to Maryville, his old family home.

His eldest son,  

ALEXANDER GEORGE WILSON JP, of Maryville and Cranmore, born in 1876, was a lieutenant in the Army Motor Reserve; educated at Cheam and Harrow. He succeeded his father in 1904.

The lease on Belvoir Park was terminated in 1918.

First published in October, 2012. 

Bank Buildings, Belfast

The Bank Buildings in 1901 (Image: Robert Welch/NMNI)

THE BANK BUILDINGS, ONE OF BELFAST'S MOST ICONIC BUILDINGS, WAS ENGULFED BY A CATASTROPHIC FIRE ON THE 28TH AUGUST, 2018.

The Bank Buildings, Castle Place, Belfast, stand between Castle Street to the south, and Bank Street to the north.

The first building on the site (originally part of the 16-acre grounds and gardens of old Belfast Castle) was designed by Robert Taylor and erected by Waddell Cunningham in 1785.

Cunningham, one of Belfast's most prominent business men, opened the premises as a bank in 1787.

Castle Place, Belfast, 1843

Following the bank's collapse in 1789, the building became the episcopal residence of the Lord Bishop of Down and Connor, the Rt Rev Dr William Dickson.

In 1804, it was converted into a shop and, in 1816, the last public execution was carried on its doorstep.

The Northern Banking Company purchased the Bank Buildings in 1825 for use as their head office.

In 1853, William Robertson and Henry Hawkins from Waterford, J C Ledlie from Cork, and Robert Ferguson, of Belfast, established a wholesale drapery firm, which soon became a commercial department store in the city.

The old Georgian edifice was demolished and a four-storey, seven-bay Italianate building of 1855 was erected in its place by Hawkins, Robertson and Co.

The History Hub Ulster has written an article about the history of The Bank Buildings, including a rare image of the second building built in 1855.

W H Lynn designed the new bank buildings in 1900.

He intended it as a bridge to the 20th century, with a compromise between the classical style of the upper part of the building and the great expanse of plate glass below.

Old photographs show a statue directly above the clock, and a coat-of-arms at third floor level.

I contacted the pre-eminent Ulster architectural historian Marcus Patton, OBE, about this, and he remarked:-

"I have a photo of Bank Buildings which I took around 1980 and there is no sign of the statue then, whereas there is a Hogg one perhaps of 1930 which does show it (a couple of winged cherubs holding a torch)." 

"It could have gone with the bomb damage in 1975 or the subsequent renovations." 

"The coat of arms doesn’t show in the Hogg photo so it must have gone early on..."

Photo Credit: Kyle Leyden

Robertson, Leslie, Ferguson and Co were royal warrant holders to Queen Victoria.

Until 1961, only the ground and first floors were used as a retail store, with the remainder of the building taken up by the company’s wholesale warehouse.

In that year, however, the Bank Buildings underwent total renovation.

The new arcade shop front was lighted at night, and a modernised main entrance was added at Castle Place (or Junction, as it was known when trams operated).

The old pillars and showcases on the ground floor were removed.

The Belfast Telegraph announced the ’bold policy of renovation, repair and the moving and improving of entire departments, has brought it into line with the latest Bond Street ideas.’

In 1969, the shares of Robertson, Ledlie, Ferguson and Company were sold to the House of Fraser group, whose chairman was Sir Hugh Fraser Bt.

It was hoped at the time that the Bank Buildings would benefit from the knowledge and resources of a large national firm, expanding throughout the United Kingdom.

Robertson, Ledlie, Ferguson and Co, however, continued to operate the store as a subsidiary company, and only four years later, Boots acquired the Bank Buildings when it took over House of Fraser.

On the 9th April, 1975, three bombs exploded in the Bank Buildings.

A huge fire broke out shortly afterwards and damaged parts of the building.

In 1979, the Bank Buildings were taken over by the Dublin-based fashion retailer Primark.

Within 18 months, the store was totally refurbished and the exterior restored to its 1903 glory.

A catastrophic fire engulfed the Edwardian building at about 11am of the 28th August, 2018.

The blaze lasted for a number of hours, leaving it a roofless, gutless shell.

The interior was cleared of rubble in 2020, and site works are currently being progressed.

The Bank Buildings reopened in the first week of November, 2022.

First published in August, 2018.

Old Market House, Belfast

BELFAST'S old Market House stood at 1, High Street, at the corner of Cornmarket (which itself runs from 1, High Street to Arthur Square).

In his indispensable Central Belfast: A Historical Gazetteer, Marcus Patton, OBE, remarks,

"The 17th century Market House was built in 1639 of "small red bricks" with sandstone dressings, and extended to provide a proper courthouse on the first floor after 1663. This was the first public hall in the town. It had an arcaded ground floor and three-stage tower with ogival-roofed turret and weathercock, and a hanging clock."

An observer, John Smyth, once recalled that

"The front of the Market House was seldom without a skeleton in chains; the corner of it never without a ghastly head rotting in the open air."

The tower had a peal of bells which were probably rung at the beginning and end of market days; and for the funerals of prominent citizens.

High Street and Market-house, Belfast, 1786, by J M Carey (Image: Ulster Hall)

The Market House, a building of considerable importance to the civic and political development of Belfast between the 17th and 19th centuries, was leased by Adam McClean in 1802.

The late historian Sir Charles Brett remarked that McClean, a local landowner who possessed many plots and leases in the centre of Belfast, accumulated his holdings from the Donegall family in the 1820s; and "it appears he was one of those who sought to benefit from the second Marquess’s financial difficulty by acquiring good, long leases at low rents which he then built up."

McClean demolished the Market House in 1812 and constructed two houses in its place.

The site was acquired in the 1860s by the tea merchant, Forster Green, of Derryvolgie House, Malone Road, Belfast, who built a new emporium (above left) with granite plinth, arcaded ground floor and stucco upper floors.

Robust chimneys and urns adorned the balustraded parapet.

This block was demolished in 1929-30, to be replaced by a purpose-built store for F W Woolworth & Co, which operated from the building 1915-2003.

The building was sold for £17.9m and subsequently underwent significant internal refurbishment.

The retail chain Dunnes Stores have occupied the present building since late 2003.

First published in July, 2014.

Belfast Yeomanry Painting

Review of the Belfast Yeomanry (Image: Belfast Harbour Commissioners). Click to enlarge.

In George Benn's History of the Town of Belfast he mentions a famous picture, depicting a great Review of the Military and Yeomanry of Belfast by the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, the 3rd Earl of Hardwicke, on the 27th August, 1804.

Benn explains that all persons subscribing were to have their portraits introduced.

The painter, Thomas Romney Robinson (1756-1810), remarked that

"It will be curious to hand down to future generations the likenesses of the principal inhabitants of the present day assembled in one of the most beautiful parts of this improving town." 

"It will be an additional value to the undertaking that the ladies will be introduced as gracing this interesting scene."

The painting, which today hangs at the Belfast Harbour Commissioners' Office, Corporation Square, contains:-

• 1st Marquess of Donegall, in uniform and on horseback;
• Sir Edward May Bt;
• Sir Arthur Chichester Bt;
• Thomas R Robinson, the painter, his wife, and their son Romney, a little boy in a fancy costume;
• Edward May;
• James Douglas;
• Thomas Verner;
• George Augustus Seymour Harvey;
• Gilbert McIlveen;
• William and John Sinclaire;
• William Johnston;
• Hugh Crawford;
• Narcissus Batt; 
• Dr and Mrs Bruce;
• Dr Drummon; 
• Mrs Graydon;
• Henry Joy; 
• Thomas Whinnery; 
• John Smith; 
• Robert Batt;
• Nathan Gregg;
• Robert Getty; 
• John Barnett; 
• Goerge Joy; 
• Rev W Armstrong;
• Dr James McDonnell;
• Alexander Stewart;
• Valentine Jones;
• Mrs Batt;
• etc.

George Benn remarks that the painting is nine feet in width and six feet in height, with forty-four figures, some on horseback, dated 1804.

"Mr Jones, ninety years of age and quite blind ... had a great objection to have his likeness taken, but the artist was introduced by stealth into his room, and while he painted, some of the family kept the old gentleman in chat; and so the picture was finished, and was said to be an admirable likeness."

"So far as we can recollect, the likenesses are generally good, and several more whose faces are not shown, and whose names are not given, are on horseback, and many others, besides some ladies."

"The work is altogether a Belfast historical picture, and of very great interest and value."

The Dictionary of Irish Artists, 1913, tells us that the painting was exhibited in 1809 under the title A Military Procession in Belfast in honour of Lord Nelson.

Robinson, it is said, originally intended this picture to represent a "Review of the Belfast Volunteers and Yeomanry by the Earl of Hardwicke, Lord Lieutenant, in 1804," by which title it is now known.

About 1807 he tried to dispose of it by lottery, but, not being successful, he put in a statue of Lord Nelson in the centre of the picture, and exhibited it in Dublin as above.

A note on the Key to the picture in the Harbour Office says: "The background originally represented Donegall Place, but the artist afterwards changed it into the present ideal one."

No such event as a procession in honour of Lord Nelson took place, and there was never any statue of Nelson in Belfast.

First published in July, 2020.

Ann Street, Belfast

57-59 Ann Street, Belfast (Timothy Ferres, 2022)

ANN STREET, Belfast, runs from 21, Arthur Square, to Queen's Bridge.

The oldest remaining building is probably at 57-59 Ann Street, now Bogart, a menswear shop.

These premises are at the corner of Ann Street and Upper Church Lane.

57-59 Ann Street: Upper Church Lane elevation (Timothy Ferres, 2022)

Marcus Patton, OBE, in his Historical Gazetteer of central Belfast, remarks that the building dates from about 1830; and was refaced fifty years later, ca 1885.

"Ornate and elegant four-storey stucco building with Italianate details including rich cornice and balustraded parapet with spiked urn finials; ornamental shop front with iron cresting and panelled pilasters; delicate moulding round panel on gable to Upper Church Lane."

33, Ann Street (Timothy Ferres, 2022)

Number 33, in 1907, was occupied by Erskine & Sons Ltd, trunk, bag, and portmanteau manufacturers.

About 1960, number 33 became the premises of H Johnston, Wholesale & Retail Umbrella, Sunshade & Walking Stick Manufacturer, a business which once held a royal warrant from His Majesty The King, and proudly displayed the said warrant outside their premises.

This building dates from about 1850, and is three storeys in height.

• 1852  William H Milligan, Grocer, tobacco, and snuff manufacturer
• 1880  John Woods & Co, wholesale grocers
• 1910  Erskine & Sons, trunk, bag, and portmanteau manufacturers

The brick is now painted over, with stucco quoins and parapet moulding.

Johnston's distinctive gilded umbrella unfurled with a blue-sleeved arm adorned the exterior of the shop, having originally hanged resplendently outside 31 High Street.

Fish City, a seafood restaurant, opened in 2013 and has become well established in the city centre today.

First published in July, 2022.

Belfast Castle: III

AN ARTICLE FROM EDDIE'S BOOK EXTRACTS

THE VIEW from the gardens and the castle was, perhaps, unsurpassed for the beauty of its quiet landscape.

The fertile valley through which the Lagan wended its seaward course had as a background the hills of Castlereagh (Grey Castle) with the old residence of Con O'Neill occupying a prominent position on the summit; while the slopes of the Holywood hills were visible across the twenty-one arches of the Long Bridge.

The Cromac wood, at that time the undergrowth of the primeval forest, lay to the south, skirting the west bank of the Lagan and extending westward as far as the present Shaftesbury Square.

The River Blackstaff meandered in its zig-zag course from the Great Bridge of Belfast, alias Brickhill Bridge, alias Saltwater Bridge, to its outlet at the south of the Long Bridge and, in its course, supplying fresh water to the Castle fish pond, situated at the present Arthur Square.

To the west rose the Black Mountain, a basaltic range of hills, one of which is still known as the Squire's Hill, converted into a deer park by the Lord Deputy, a district now known as Old Park, with the grazing ground covered with sites for residential dwellings.

To the north arose the clear outline of Ben Madigan, with its streaks of limestone glistening in the sunshine, and the contour of its summit bearing a striking resemblance to the profile of Napoleon Bonaparte.

The trees of the new deer park, so-called to distinguish it from the Old Park, sloped in an easterly direction from the Cave Hill to the shores of the Belfast Lough, terminating at Parkmount.

Early on Sunday morning, 25th April, 1708, the Castle was reduced to a mass of smouldering ruins and there perished in the flames the three youngest daughters, Lady Jane, Lady Frances, and Lady Henrietta Chichester.

The daughter of the Vicar, the Rev Mr Barklie, and a servant maid, Catherine Douglas, and a maid, Mary Teggart, escaped from the devouring flames.

The cause of the fire is said to have been due to the carelessness of a servant who lit a wood fire in a room recently washed, and took no precautions to watch for sparks.

All the goods were also destroyed before the men of the town could get in within the walls to help; and these walls were twelve feet high.

Such is the account, written by a prominent Belfast resident at the time of the occurrence.

A considerable quantity of silver plate and objets d'art were apparently rescued from the Castle.

First published in July, 2012.

Belfast Castle: II

EDDIE'S BOOK EXTRACTS SHALL BE OF INTEREST TO THOSE SEEKING KNOWLEDGE OF BELFAST'S HERITAGE

THE CASTLE GARDENS OF THE JACOBEAN BELFAST CASTLE AND SURROUNDINGS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 18TH CENTURY, FROM DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE, BOTH MAPS AND LEASES, USING, AS A GUIDE, PHILLIPS' MAP OF 1685

"In the foreground is the Farset River, flowing down High Street, with Chads' Bridge opposite the Market House."

"The small houses to the extreme right, or west, are on the site of the present Bank Buildings, where Castle Street terminated as a continuation of High Street."

"The Castle had a north-easterly aspect, and opposite the entrance gates, on the east side of the Corn Market, was the Market-House with its square tower, on the first floor of which, above the market stalls, was the room in which the burgesses met at their assembly meetings."

"The house adjoining on the east side of the corn market was the Castle brew-house, wherein the cider was brewed from the apples gathered in the orchards."

"On the west side of the Corn market, and opposite the brew-house, was the house containing the pleasure boats in the barge-yard, from which in a south-east direction was the castle wharf, joining "The New Cutt River" at the sluice, and entering the Lagan on the south side of the Long Bridge."

High Street, Belfast, in the 17th Century

"The garden path in front of the barge-yard, running in a south-west direction, was the Long Walk, extending the entire length of the Pleasure Garden."

"The Pigeon House was the small house with the pointed roof."

"Proceeding from the Pigeon House, past the back of the Castle are the stables, with their five dormer windows, having a carriage entrance from Castle Street."

"The Ash Walk, as it appears in Phillips' Map of 1685, did not extend the whole length of the gardens."

"It seems, however, to have been extended, at a later date, as in a lease, bearing the date 14th June, 1717, its measurement is given as 530 feet from Castle Street in a southerly direction."

"According to that measurement, it formed the western boundary of the Castle gardens, and was probably planted with ash trees as a shelter to the fruit gardens from the prevailing westerly winds."

"Its frontage to Castle Street was 250 feet, so that we can fix its area as three acres."

"To the east of the Ash Walk was Robin's Orchard, having a frontage to Castle Street; and the garden situated between Robin's Orchard and the Castle was the Melon Garden."

"The small building, with an entrance through the Melon Garden, was originally the Coach House."

First published in July, 2012.

Dunmurry

EDITED EXTRACTS FROM THE TOPOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF IRELAND, 1837

DUNMURRY, parish of Drumbeg, barony of Upper Belfast, County Antrim, on the river Glenwater, and road from Belfast to Lisburn, nearly midway between these two towns.

Dunmurry ca 1830 (Image: historic OS map)

This place, which takes its name from two Danish forts, or raths, in its immediate vicinity, was formerly the parish of Ballygosh, which soon after the Reformation was annexed to that of Drumbeg.

Its ancient name has been superseded by that of the village which has been erected, and which is beautifully situated in a sequestered and fertile vale, and remarkably neat.

Dunmurry (Image: W A Green/NMNI)

On the Glenwater are two bridges, one at the village, an ancient structure, and the other, over which the Dublin road passes, a noble pile of two arches of freestone, quarried on the spot.

The surrounding hills being richly planted add greatly to the beauty of the scenery, which is also embellished with several handsome seats, of which the principal are SEYMOUR HILL;

Woodbourne (Image: eBay)

 WOODBOURNE; Dunmurry House [demolished]; Suffolk [demolished]; Glenville; and Collin House [demolished].

Dunmurry (Timothy Ferres, 2022)

In the village are some extensive flour mills, worked partly by water and partly by steam, and ttached to them are large stores for grain and malt kilns.

THE church of Ballygosh has long since disappeared, and the rectorial tithes of the two townlands which constituted the parish were granted by JAMES I to Sir Arthur Chichester, and the vicarial tithes to the incumbent of Drumbeg.

There is a place of worship for Presbyterians, formerly in connection with the General, but now with the Remonstrant, Synod of Ulster.

On Collin mountain, to the north-west of the village, is a very conspicuous cairn of considerable extent; it consists of small stones piled together in a conical form, and is now almost covered with green sward.

First Dunmurry Presbyterian Church (Timothy Ferres, 2022)

FIRST DUNMURRY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH,  (described as "Meeting-house" on the historic map above) is almost certainly the oldest building in Dunmurry.

Circa 1906 (Image: Ebay)

The congregation of Dunmurry's first Presbyterian church was established in 1676, and a meeting-house was erected on a nearby site, of which no trace remains.

A second place of worship was built in 1714, and a date stone at the back of the building, inscribed with “Anno Christi, 1714, R Georgy RJ,” could be from the original meeting house.

The mural plaque over the left entrance door declares that it was built in 1719, presumed to be a painter's error, given that the present building was erected in 1779.

The architect of the present church is uncertain, though it's thought to have been Roger Mulholland, architect of First Presbyterian Church, Rosemary Street, Belfast, in 1783.

Rev James Stouppe, Minister from 1772-80 (Timothy Ferres, 2022)

A stained-glass window in the front elevation, in memory of John McCance JP (1816-63) and his brother Henry McCance JP DL (1829-1900), was erected in 1900.

McCance memorial window

First published in July, 2022.

Royal Sussex Regiment

Click to Enlarge

If you happen to be walking past Anderson & McAuley's former premises at 1, Donegall Place, Belfast, you shall see a metal plaque which records the fact that, on the 28th June, 1701, ARTHUR, 3RD EARL OF DONEGALL (1666-1706), formed the 35th Regiment of Foot, which became part of the Royal Sussex Regiment.

Lord Donegall was 35 years of age when this occurred, and was killed in action merely five years later, at Fort Montjuich, near Barcelona, Spain.

Possible portrait of Arthur, 3rd Earl of Donegall
(Image: Ulster Museum)

The encampment of first recruits was within the precincts of the Jacobean BELFAST CASTLE (accidentally burned to the ground seven years later, in 1708).

Albion Place, Belfast

Albion Place ca 1900 (Image: A R Hogg/NMNI)

Numbers 16-42 Bradbury Place, Belfast, formerly Albion Place, a terrace of three-storey, early Victorian houses, were built between 1832-48.

The first houses to be constructed had triangular pediments above the first-floor windows; with moulded surrounds at second-floor level.

One of which boasted a balustraded parapet and fluted urns.

The front gardens were all built over with single-storey shops about 1900.

The balustraded building to the left has been absorbed into Lavery's bar.

A section of the terrace was demolished in 1866 to make way for the railway line, leaving the site vacant. 

The original developer of the site, Martin Wallace, was living in Albion Place in 1880.

Marcus Patton, OBE, in his Central Belfast: A Historical Gazetteer, remarks that

"the southern end and the mid-terrace house at nos. 24-26 were demolished in 1990, which has effectively terminated the life of the terrace as a whole." 

"It is a great shame that the terrace was not developed from the rear, as separate access existed to the two-storey mews houses behind from Albion Lane."

30-44 Bradbury Place, 2022 (Timothy Ferres)

Incidentally, I visited Albion Lane in June, 2022, and it was in a sad state, with large council wheeled bins proliferating along the alley, and various obstructions along the entire length of the Lane.

Numbers 30-44 in the terrace were all demolished in 2021, in preparation for a block of student accommodation.

First published in June, 2022.

Malone Place, Belfast

Malone Place at Sandy Row, May, 2020 (Timothy Ferres)

MALONE PLACE, Belfast, is a short, narrow terrace of little houses tucked away from the madding crowd.

You might catch a glimpse of it if you are travelling past the beginning of the Lisburn Road.

It's actually at the very end of Sandy Row, leading to Bradbury Place.

This diminutive terrace is one-sided, as it were.

The Toll-house Garden, May, 2020 (Timothy Ferres)

There's an enclosed 'garden' opposite the houses, with railings, locked up, without any seating.

Incidentally, King William Park (aptly named, being adjacent to loyal Sandy Row) has no seating, either; so bring a picnic rug!

In the middle of this small enclosure there is a plaque which tells us that the gardens of the toll gate cottage were close to this location.

The old toll-gate cottage certainly was across the street, at the corner of the present Tollgate House of 1987-88, quite a large prosaic block on Bradbury Place.

The Toll-gate Cottage, looking towards Shaftesbury Square, ca 1910

In the name of Progress the little cottage, built about 1815, was swept away in the autumn of 1961.

Let's be thankful that Malone Place survives.

The Northern Ireland Department for Communities' Historic Buildings Database has written a lot about Malone Place, and has already compiled information from the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland.

Malone Place, May, 2020 (Timothy Ferres)

Malone Place commences at the very end of Sandy Row, where its junction with the Lisburn Road begins.

It terminates at the Malone Place General Practitioners' Maternity Hospital, a block of ca 1925.

Blondin Street runs from here to Gaffikin Street.

In the 1974 Belfast street directory there are fifteen houses, all odd-numbered:-

• 1 ~ 'Scotts, General Dealers.'
• 3-5 ~ Vacant.
• 7 ~ Thompson, WJ & Sons ~ Boot & Shoe Repairers and Retailers.
• 9 ~ Robertson, Miss A.
• 11 ~ Walmsley, Richard B.
• 13 ~ Delaney, William John.
• 15 ~ Turley, James.
• 17 ~ Greer, Mrs Margaret.
• 19 ~ McNamara, John.
• 21 ~ Madill, Miss M.
• 23 ~ Evans, Francis.
• 25 ~ Burgess, W.
• 27 ~ Irwin, Mrs Ellie.
• 29 ~ Watson, Mrs Florence.

Number One, known as Malone Place Apartment, is available for rent.

Number Five (the ground floor) was for sale in May, 2020.

Number Seven seemed to be a private residence from between 1843-49, when it was built, till about 1895, when it became a shop. It remained a shop until about 2004, when it reverted back to being a domestic residence.

Number Nine has always been a residential property. About 1850 a railway clerk lived here, followed by several other clerks, and a reporter in the Belfast Telegraph in 1884.

Number Seventeen, like the rest, was built about 1850. In 1867, one Jane Crosbey was summonsed to appear in court on a charge of having been disorderly in the public street, information having been received by magistrates ‘as to the character of the house she kept’.

The Historic Buildings database, dated 2011, remarks that Number Twenty-three is:

"A two-storey, two-bay Victorian mid-terrace dwelling built ca1860. Forming part of the latter half of the terrace, the exterior of the house has retained its general character, although some historic features of interest have been lost following refurbishment of the terrace in ca2000." 

"The overall intact external appearance of the terrace ensures that it is a good surviving example of housing of this type. Number 23 adds significant value to the group as a whole, makes a positive architectural contribution to the character of the area."

That evaluation may be applicable to many of the others. 

First published in May, 2020.