History Shorts: snippets of local history

The Farset is the now mostly underground river that is said to give Belfast its name*. There has been talk of 'daylighting' the river in places, ie uncovering it from its culverted fate to flow openly again. This could boost nature and air quality and also potentially alleviate flood risk. Belfast's underground rivers have been linked to some of the flooding experienced by the city. Most articles about the Farset focus on the stretch from High Street to the Lagan. While it's not universally known that a river of some importance in the city's development once flowed here, I'm betting a fair few High Street shoppers know of its existence underfoot. But on the Google Map below I've expanded outwards to try to map some of the Farset's known locations along its whole course, while guessing at a few more. " The lost river that gave Belfast its name " is an interesting 2013 article from the Belfast Telegraph  which has provided the basis for many

Built between the 15th and 17th centuries upon basalt cliffs along the dramatic north Antrim coast of Ireland, this was a former stronghold of the famed Clan MacDonnell, a sept of the Scottish Clan Donald. Dunluce Castle was first built by their rivals the MacQuillan family circa 1500 (on the site of an earlier Norman settlement), before the MacDonnells seized it around 50 years later. Sorley Boy MacDonnell ( Scottish Gaelic Somhairle Buidhe MacDonnell) effectively established the Clan MacDonnell as powerful rulers in Antrim; his father having been lord of Islay and Kintyre just across the sea (so close that the isle of Islay is visible from Dunluce). After defeating the MacQuillans in 1558, Sorley Boy's next great rival was to be the Gaelic chieftain Shane O'Neill, who took him captive in 1565 before he himself was murdered by MacDonnells in 1568.  At various times the MacDonnells were in conflict with English forces, and Sorley Boy's wife and children were among the

A residential area of Abingdon in Oxfordshire retains the hint of how the landscape was shaped in the age of William the Conqueror. Land here was awarded to a knight following the Norman invasion of 1066, upon which was constructed a motte and bailey. A small river, the Stert, flowed beside it and served as a moat. The motte and bailey was later abandoned in favour of a medieval house, later known as FitzHarris manor house (or Fitzharry's) built a short distance away. Subsequent developments, including massive expansion of housing in the 20th century, has obliterated much of the old landscape. However that old Norman motte is still there, now largely overgrown by trees and difficult to see. You might not even realize it's there. The LiDAR image below shows the extent of the motte and the clearing some 100 yards away where the grounds of the old manor house used to be (later rebuilt, it was finally demolished in 1953 having fallen into disrepair after the rest of the estate

Though it bears the name "McKnights Hill" today, Joe's Hill is the only name I've ever known for the B road linking Derrymore Road (beside the modern St Peter's Primary School) with Millvale Road in Cloughreagh townland outside Bessbrook in County Armagh (Northern Ireland). I've never, however, seen it named Joe's Hill on any map, including the excellent  historical maps available through the PRONI website  - it's just how I knew it growing up. Is this how others knew it? What can the maps tell us about its name, local or official? The earliest of these maps online is the OSNI historical first edition dated 1832-1846 and the road I know as 'Joe's Hill' is there, opposite the site of Derrymore House (now managed by the National Trust). On this map, and the 1846-62, version it appears to run awkwardly to an entrance by a gate lodge on the Derrymore House estate. I don't think a trace of this exists today. Beside its junction with Derr

Catching up on my old home area: I see the old Atkinson's corn mill on the Millvale Road near the crossroads with Joe's Hill and the Doctor's Hill was demolished in 2014 and work is underway on a new housing development. The mill was in a terrible state so it's no surprise to see it demolished. However this little slice of local history can still be viewed in its dilapidated state on historical Street View imagery. The image below is from Google maps imagery dated 2009: Here is the same stretch from 2016: One of the houses on the opposite side of the road has been renovated but the other is even more overgrown. Here is the 2009 imagery from the other direction, showing the spot where the old Bessbrook-Newry tram crossed the Millvale Road and Bessbrook river: Many thanks to Google for making such imagery available for embedding.

Llanthony Priory, nestled in a valley in the Black Mountains, is thrilling to behold from the top of Hatterall Ridge. We walked along the ridge from Hay Bluff on a beautiful spring day. The Augustinian priory has Grade I listed status. First founded in the 12th century but extended in later medieval period.

I recently enjoyed a tour of the former Crumlin Road Gaol in Belfast so was interested to see the following sketches from Sir Charles Lanyon when they appeared among recent Flickr uploads from PRONI. The prison opened in 1846 and only closed in 1996, having fallen into considerable disrepair. The building, which has 'accommodated' in one form or another some of Ireland's most famous politicians, now has Grade A listed status. Here's one of my own photos from the yard just before a cloud burst! Hopefully I'll sort out some more soon, including from inside the tunnel: See more about the gaol, including details of tours