BALLEE

BALLEE, or BALLY, a parish, in the barony of LECALE, county of Down, and province of ULSTER, 3 miles (S.E.by E) from Downpatrick, on the road to Ardglass, containing 2598 inhabitants. It formerly comprised, according to the Ordnance survey, 6427 and three quarters statute acres, of which 6282 acres were applotted under the tithe act; but the townlands of Jordan's Crew and Kildare's Crew have been severed from it under the Church Temporalities Act, and united to the parish of Ardglass, and Ballystokes has been annexed to Saul, with their tithes and cure of souls; the tithes of Ballyhosit have been also appropriated to the incumbent of Ardglass, but the cure of souls remains to the rector of Bailee. It is wholly under cultivation ; the land is very good, and there is neither waste land nor bog. Ballyhosit House, the residence of T. Gracy, Esq., is a large and handsome edifice; Ballee House is in the occupation of R. Stitt, Esq.; the glebe-house is commodious and well built, and there are many other good houses, principally occupied by wealthy farmers. Until lately it formed part of the corps of the deanery of Down, but the union was dissolved under the provisions of the Church Temporalities Act, which came into operation on the 1st of Nov.,1834, and after the preferment of the late dean, when a new arrangement was effected by act of council. The living is now an independent rectory, in the diocese of Down, and in the gift of the Crown. The entire tithes of the parish amounted to £598.14.3., of which, under the new arrangements, £340.13. is payable to the rector of Ballee, subject to a deduction of £25.3.0 appropriated to the economy fund of the cathedral, and of the remainder, £146 is payable to the dean, £97 to the rector of Ardglass, and £14 to the rector of Saul. The church is a large plain edifice without a tower, built on the foundations of a former structure in 1749. The glebe-house was built at an expense of £500, of which £450 was a gift and £50 a loan from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1816; and there is a glebe of seven acres. In the R. C. divisions it is the head of a union or district, which also comprises the parish of Ballyculter, and contains three chapels, situated respectively at Ballycrottle, in Ballee, and at Strangford and Cargagh, in Ballyculter. There is a large meeting-house for Presbyterians in connection with the Remonstrant Synod, of the second class. The parochial school, in which 40 boys and 28 girls are taught,is supported conjointly by the rector and Hugh Johnson, Esq., of London, and there are two others. There are also four private schools, in which are 113 boys and 90 girls. J. Dunn, an eccentric itinerant dealer, by will in 1798, gave £100 in trust to A. Gracy, Esq., who purchased with it a chief-rent at Ballymote, in the parish of Downpatrick, which is divided annually between the Presbyterian poor of Down and Ballee. R. Glenny left £100, the interest to be equally divided among the poor Catholics, Protestants, and Presbyterians of the parish, but it is not now available ; and Mrs.Kelly,of Loughkeland, by will in 1805,gave £100 in trust to Mr. Gracy, with which he purchased a house in Downpatrick, now let on lease at an annual rent of £10, which is distributed among the poor at Christmas. Near the mountain of Slieve-na-Gridel, which, according to the Ordnance survey, rises 414 feet above the level of the sea, is a remarkable druidical altar, the table stone of which is 11 feet long and 9 broad, and on the townland of Ballyalton is an ancient burial-ground, in which are some curiously inscribed stones. A splendid golden torques, richly ornamented and set with gems, was found near the glebe in 1834.

BALLYCULTER

BALLYCULTER, a parish, in the barony of LECALE county of Down and province of ULSTER; containing,with the post-town of Strangford, 2221 inhabitants. It is situated on Lough Strangford, and comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, (including islands and detached portions) 5177 and a half statute acres, of which 1753 are applotted under the tithe act; about four-fifths are arable and pasture, and the remainder, excepting about 70 acres of woodland and 40 of water, is waste land and bog. The soil is very fertile, and the land is in a state of excellent cultivation, a considerable quantity of corn is sent to Liverpool and Glasgow. At Tallyratty are some lead mines, which were worked in 1827, and found very productive; the ore is considered to be of superior quality, but they are not now worked. Castle Ward, the splendid seat of Lord Bangor; Strangford House, the residence of the Hon. Harriet Ward, and Strangford Lodge, that of J. Blackwood, Esq., are situated in the parish. The village is neatly built, and is one of the most pleasant in the county. A manor court is held at Strangford every three weeks by the seneschal of the lord of the manor, in whom are vested very extensive privileges; its jurisdiction extends over the parish and the river of Strangford. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Down, and was formerly annexed to the deanery of Down, from which it was separated in 1834, and made a distinct rectory, in the patronage of the Crown, the tithes amount to £387. 15. 7. The church, a spacious and handsome structure, was erected in 1723, and a tower and spire were added to it in 1770: the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have lately granted £295 for its repair. There is a chapel at Strangford, the private property of Lord De Roos, of which the rector is chaplain. The glebe-house was built by aid of a gift of £450 and a loan of £50 from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1817: there is a glebe at Strangford, comprising 6a. 2r. 37p. Lord Bangor is about to build a glebe-house in or near the village for the residence of the rector. In the R. C. divisions the parish forms part of the union or district of Ballee ; there are two chapels, one at Strangford and the other at Cargagh, and there are two places of worship for Wesleyan Methodists. In the village is a handsome schoolhouse, with residences for a master and mistress, built in 1824, and supported by an annual donation of £50 from Lord Bangor, and a small donation from the rector. An infants' school is supported entirely by the Hon. Harriet Ward. These schools afford instruction to about 94 boys and 84 girls, and there are also two pay schools, in which are about 82 boys and 48 girls, and four Sunday schools. Near the church are four handsome alms-houses, built in 1832 at the expense of Lady Sophia Ward, who endowed them with £40 per annum, payable out of the estate of Lord Bangor for ever, the management is vested in three trustees, of whom the rector for the time being is one. Within the parish are three castles erected by De Courcy and his followers after the conquest of Ulster, one is situated close to the quay at Strangford, one on the creek below Castle Ward, and the third is Audley Castle on a rock opposite to Portaferry.

BALLYHALBERT

BALLYHALBERT, a parish, in the barony of ARDES, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 3 miles (N. E.) from Kirkcubbin: the population is returned with the union of St. Andrew's. It comprises, according to the Ordnance survey (including islands), 4012 statute acres. The village, which in 1831 contained 322 inhabitants, is situated on the eastern coast, and on the road from Portaferry to Donaghadee: it contains about 70 houses, and is a coast-guard station, forming one of the twelve which constitute the district of Donaghadee. Off the coast is Burr Island, the most eastern point of land in Ireland. The parish is in the diocese of Down, and is one of the three of which the vicarages were consolidated by the 2nd of Queen Anne into the union of Ballywalter, or vicarage of St. Andrew's ; the rectory is appropriate to the Lord-Primate. The tithes amount to £388. 2. 6., of which £258. 15. is payable to the appropriator, and £129.7.6 to the incumbent. On the next avoidance of the benefice of St. Andrew's, this parish will become a separate living, in the patronage of the Lord-Primate. There are some remains of the old church near the village. In the R. C. divisions it forms part of the union or district of Lower Ardes or Ballygelget. There is a place of worship for Presbyterians in connection with the Synod of Ulster; also a school.

BALLYKINLAR

BALLYKINDLAR, a parish, in the barony of LECALE, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 3 miles (N.E) from Clough ; the population is returned with the parish of Tyrella. This parish derives its name, signifying the 'Town of the Candlestick' from the appropriation of its tithes to furnish lights for the cathedral of Christchurch, Dublin. It is situated on the bay of Dundrum, on the eastern coast, and on the road from Newry to Ardglass, and comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 2038 and a half statute acres, the property of the Marquess of Downshire. A considerable portion of the surface consists of sand hills, and the land is in general very indifferent. There was formerly an extensive tract of bog, which was drained in 1819, and is now wholly under cultivation. It is a rectory, in the diocese of Down, entirely appropriate to the economy funds of the cathedral of Christchurch, Dublin: the tithes amount to £54. 5. 6 and a half, There has been neither church nor incumbent in the parish since the Reformation. On the shore of the inner bay of Dundrum, or Clough bay, are some ruins of the ancient parish church. In the R. C. divisions it is the head of a union or district, also called Tyrella, comprising the parishes of Ballykindlar and Tyrella, and part of Loughinisland, and containing chapels at Ballykindlar and Dromaroad. Near the former is a school-house.

BALLYMACARRETT

BALLYMACARRETT, a town and parish, forming part of the suburbs of BELFAST, in the barony of UPPER CASTLEREAGH, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, containing 5168 inhabitants. This place, previously to 1825, was simply a townland in the parish of Knockbreda, or Bredagh, and in the history of the county, published in 1744, is described as containing only two buildings. Mount Pottinger and a mill. It is now become a populous and flourishing town, occupying a site formerly covered by every tide, but which has been reclaimed by an extensive embankment stretching from Conswater westward to the river Lagan, opposite to the quays of Belfast, and thence on the shore of that river to Ormeau, the splendid residence of the Marquess of Donegal. The town, which in 1831 contained 257 houses, forms an appendage to Belfast, from which it is separated only by the river Lagan, which here separates the counties of Down and Antrim, and over which is a stone bridge of 21 arches: it is irregularly built, but has been greatly improved by the formation of several new streets; and a handsome bridge of five arches, about 400 yards above the long bridge, and opening a more direct communication with the southern part of Belfast, has been lately erected under an act obtained in 1831, at an expense of £6000, raised in transferable shares of £25 each. The first manufacture established here was that of glass; and since the first glass-house was built, in 1776, two other extensive establishments have been erected, though at present only one is in operation. A pottery upon a very large scale was soon afterwards established, and previously to the removal of the duty on salt, there were two extensive works for the manufacture of that article from rock salt brought from England, for exportation, which are now discontinued. The Lagan foundry, for the manufacture of steam-engines and other machinery on the most improved principles, affords employment to 140 persons: and in 1832 the first patent machine for making paper ever introduced into Ireland was made at these works. A very extensive rope-yard and sail-cloth manufactory, affording employment to 130 persons, are carried on, and two large vitriol works, of which one, established in 1799, was the second erected in the kingdom, are in full operation for supplying the bleachers, dyers, and calico printers in the neighbourhood. There are also extensive starch-manufactories, and meal and flour-mills driven by steam and water, and two large mills for spinning linen yarn were erected in 1834, and employ more than 300 persons. The manufacture of calico and muslin is carried on upon a very extensive scale, affording employment to several hundred persons. Here is a constabulary police station. This place was erected into a parish by an act of the 12th of Geo. III., and comprises 575 statute acres, which are exempt from tithes; about 28 and a half acres are under water, and the remainder are arable and pasture. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the diocese of Down, and in the patronage of the Rector of Knockbreda: it is endowed with the tithes of Ballynafeigh, an adjoining townland, amounting to £50, which is augmented from Primate Boulter's fund. The church, a neat building, was erected in 1826 by aid of a grant of £800 from the late Board of First Fruits and by subscription. In the R. C. divisions the parish forms part of the union or district of Belfast, in the diocese of Connor ; the chapel was built in 1829. There are places of worship for Presbyterians in connection with the Synod of Ulster and the Seceding Synod, and for Covenanters and Wesleyan Methodists. There are five schools in which about 298 boys and 182 girls are instructed, also three pay schools, in which are about 90 boys and 50 girls.

BALLYNAHINCH

BALLINAHINCH, a market and post-town, in the parish of MAGHERADROLL, barony of KINELEARTY, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 8 miles (E.) from Dromore, and 74 1/2 (N. by E.) from Dublin; containing 970 inhabitants. This town was founded by Sir George Rawdon, Bart., after the insurrection of 1641, as appears by the patent of Chas. II. granting the manor of Kinelearty to the Rawdon family, which, after reciting that Sir George had built a town and two mills, and had repaired the church, and that a large space had been appropriated for holding markets and fairs, created that manor, with a demesne of 1000 acres and courts leet and baron, and granted the privilege of a market to be held on Thursday, and two fairs annually. During the disturbances of 1798, the main body of the insurgents, after being repulsed near Saintfield, took post here on Windmill-hill and on some high ground in the demesne of the Earl of Moira, a descendant of Sir G. Rawdon. On the 12th of June, Gen. Nugent marched against them from Belfast with the Monaghan regiment of militia, part of the 22nd dragoons, and some yeomanry infantry and cavalry; and was joined near this place by Lieut.-Col. Stewart with his party from Downpatrick, making in all about 1500 men. The insurgents were soon driven from their post on the Windmill-hill, and the king's troops set fire to the town. Both parties spent the night in preparations for a general action, which took place at an early hour on the following morning, and was maintained about three hours with artillery, but with little effect. At length the Monaghan regiment of militia, posted with two field-pieces at Lord Moira's gate, was attacked with such determined fury by the pikemen of the insurgents that it fell back in confusion on the Hillsborough cavalry, which retreated in disorder; but these troops having rallied, while the Argyleshire fencibles entering the demesne, were making their attack on another side, the insurgents retired to a kind of fortification on the top of the hill, which for some time they defended with great courage, but at length gave way and dispersed in all directions; the main body fled to the mountains of Slieve Croob, where they soon surrendered or retired to their several homes, and thus was the insurrection terminated in this quarter.

The town is situated on the road from Dromore to Saintfield, and consists of a square and four streets, comprising, in 1831, 171 houses, many of which are well built. The market is on Thursday, and is well supplied; and fairs are held on the first Thursday in January, Feb. 12th, March 3rd, April 5th, May 19th, July 10th, Aug. 18th, Oct. 6th, and Nov. 17th. A linen-hall was built by the Earl of Moira, but it has fallen into ruins. Here is a station of the constabulary police. A court for the manor of Kinelearty was formerly held, in which debts to the amount of £10 were recoverable, but it has fallen into disuse. There is a large court-house in the square, built by Lord Moira in1795, but now in a dilapidated state. The same nobleman also built a church in 1772, which having fallen into decay was taken down in 1829, and a new edifice was erected on its site, towards which £850 was granted by the late Board of First Fruits; the tower and spire of the old building remain on the west side of the present church. Opposite to it is a spacious R. C. chapel; and there are three places of worship for Presbyterians, one in connection with the Synod of Ulster, and the others in connection with the Seceding Synod. A school for girls is supported by voluntary contributions. In a picturesque and fertile valley, two miles south of the town, is a powerful sulphureous chalybeate spring, which is much resorted to during summer, and has been highly efficacious in scrophulous disorders: there are two wells, one for drinking and the other for bathing, but sufficient accommodation is not provided for the numbers that repair to the spot.--See MAGHERADROLL.

BALLYPHILIP

BALLYPHILIP, a parish, in the barony of ARDES, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER ; containing, with the post-town of Portaferry, 3090 inhabitants. This parish is situated between Strangford Lough and the eastern coast, and comprises according to the Ordnance survey, 2430 statute acres of which 1839 are applotted under the tithe act. The land is fertile, and, with the exception of about 30 acres of bog, called Ballygaroegan Moss, which supplies the inhabitants with fuel, is in a good state of cultivation. Within its limits is Carney or Kerney Point, off which are two dangerous shoals, called Carney Pladdy and Butter Pladdy. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Down, with the vicarage of Ballytrustin and the rectories of Slanes and Ardglass united by charter in the 7th of Jas. 1., which four parishes constitute the union of Ballyphilip and the corps of the chancellorship of Down, in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £208. 16. 9, and the gross income, including tithe and glebe, is £490. 10. per annum. The church, situated in the town of Portaferry, is a neat modern edifice, erected in 1787, and has been lately repaired by a grant of £343 from the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. The glebe-house was built in 1818, at an expense of £1090, of which £825 was a loan from the late Board of First Fruits, and £265 was added by the present incumbent, and is chargeable on his successors. The glebe comprises 15 Cunningham acres, valued at £45 per annum. It was recommended by the Commissioners of Ecclesiastical Inquiry, in 1831, that the parish of Ardglass, being seven miles distant, and in which a perpetual curacy of small value has been erected, should be severed from the union., and an equivalent given to the chancellor. In the R. C. divisions the parish forms part of the unions or districts of Lower and Upper Ardes, which latter is united to part of Ardkeen, Witter, Ballytrustin, Slanes, and Ardguin, there are two chapels, one near Portaferry, a spacious and handsome edifice, and the other at Witter, three miles distant. There are places of worship at Portaferry for Presbyterians in connection with the Synod of Ulster, of the second class, and for Wesleyan Methodists. A parochial school of 70 boys and 70 girls, at Portaferry, is aided by an annual donation of £30 late currency from Andrew Nugent, Esq., who built the school-house, and by a smaller from the rector, there are also seven pay schools in the parish, in which are about 60 boys and 60 girls. A bequest of £3 per annum to the poor, by one of the Bangor family, is charged on the Castle-Ward estate. An ancient church, which, according to tradition, belonged to a wealthy abbey, formerly occupied the site of the present glebe-house, near which human bones, tombs, and extensive foundations are frequently dug up. Bankmore, a large and perfect rath, and a smaller fort at Ballytrustin, are within the parish. The late Marquess of Londonderry received the rudiments of his education in the glebe-house, under Dr. Sturrock, then chancellor of Down, and incumbent of this parish. See PORTAFERRY.

BALLYTRUSTIN

BALLYTRUSTIN, a parish, in the barony of ARDES, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 1 mile (S. E.) from Portaferry; containing 735 inhabitants. This parish, which is not noticed in the Down survey, is situated on the eastern coast; it comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, including detached portions, 1681 3/4 statute acres. The soil is fertile, and the lands are all in an excellent state of cultivation, producing abundant crops. It is a vicarage, in the diocese of Down, and is part of the union of Ballyphilip and corps of the chancellorship of Down; the rectory is impropriate in John Echlin, Esq. The tithes amount to £190. 4. 2 1/2. of which £117.14. 5. is payable to the impropriator, and £72. 9. 9 1/2. to the vicar. There are some remains of the ancient church, and the churchyard is the chief burial-place of the R. C. parishioners. In the R. C. divisions it forms part of each of the unions or districts of Lower and Upper Ardes. At Kerney is a school of 100 boys and 80 girls, aided by subscription and an annual donation of £8 from Dr. Blacker, on whose estate the school-house was erected by a grant of £100 from the Lord-Lieutenant's fund. At Ballyfounder is a very large rath, nearly perfect.

BALLYWALTER

BALLYWALTER, or WHITECHURCH, a parish, in the barony of ARDES, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 4 miles (N. E.) from Kirkcubbin: the population is returned with the the union of St. Andrew's. This parish is situated on the eastern coast, and with a detached portion comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 3379 statute acres. The village, which in 1831 contained 664 inhabitants, is situated in lat. 54° 32' 20" (N.), and lon. 5° 28' (W.), and is a coast-guard station, forming one of the twelve that constitute the district of Donaghadee. It is a vicarage, in the diocese of Down, and is part of the union of Ballywalter or St. Andrew's; the rectory is appropriate to the Lord-Primate. The tithes amount to £339. 18. 1., of which £226. 12. 1. is payable to the Lord-Primate, and £113. 6. to the incumbent. On the next avoidance of the benefice of St. Andrew's, this parish will become a separate living, in the patronage of the Lord-Primate. In the R. C. divisions it forms part of the union or district of Lower Ardes. There are two places of worship for Presbyterians in connection with the Synod of Ulster. Some ruins of the old church yet exist.

BANBRIDGE

BANBRIDGE, a market and post-town, in the parish of SEAPATRICK, barony of UPPER IVEAGH, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 10 miles (N. N. E.) from Newry, and 60 miles (N.) from Dublin, containing 2469 inhabitants, but since the last census the population has much increased. This flourishing town was anciently called Ballyvally, and acquired its present name from the erection of a bridge over the Bann in 1712 on the formation of a new line of road from Dublin to Belfast. The old road passed a little to the north of it, and crossed the Bann at Huntley Glen by a ford, through which the army of Wm. III. passed on the 11th of June, 1690, on its march to the Boyne. It is situated on both sides of the river, and in 1831 contained 446 houses, many of which are handsome and well built; the larger portion is on the western side, on an eminence sloping to the river, and communicating with the smaller by the bridge, which is a handsome structure of hewn granite: the streets are wide, and the entire town wears an aspect of neatness and comfort surpassed by few places in this part of the country. In the centre of the principal street to the west of the river formerly stood the market-house, a large and inconvenient building, which was taken down in 1832 to make way for a series of improvements. Prior to that period the street was very steep and difficult of access; but an excavation, 200 yards long and 15 feet deep, has been made along its centre, crossed by a handsome viaduct of one elliptic arch of hewn granite, under which the mail coaches and other vehicles pass. The street being very wide, a carriage road was left on each side of the excavation, running parallel with it and on a level with the ground floors of the houses, shops, and public buildings: these side roads are protected throughout their entire length by a stone wall rising from the bottom of the excavation to the height of three feet above their level. The excavation interrupts the communication between the houses on the opposite sides of the street; but the viaduct being placed at the intersection of the streets obviates that inconvenience. This great undertaking was completed in 1834, and has much facilitated the passage through the town.

The town is comparatively of modern origin, and has risen with uncommon rapidity to an eminent degree of commercial importance as the head of the principal district of the linen manufacture. Even when almost every port was closed against the introduction of Irish linens, and the trade was nearly lost to the country, those of Banbridge found a ready market; and when the energies of the linen merchant on the old system were nearly paralysed by foreign competition, the merchants of this place created a new trade, by commencing as manufacturers on an extensive scale, and opening an intercourse with America and other parts. The numerous falls on the river and the uniform supply of water appear to have attracted the attention of the manufacturers soon after bleaching became a separate branch of the trade; and shortly after the application of machinery to this department, several mills were erected on its banks, mostly on a small scale, as the process at that time was very tedious and every web of considerable value. Although a formidable barrier to enterprise resulted from the unsettled state of the country, and the system of selling only through the factors in Dublin restricted the operations of the trade and regulated the prices, the linen merchants of this district seem to have gradually prospered, as, in 1772, there were no less than 26 bleach-greens on the Bann river. At that time, however, the trade was principally carried on at Gilford, and the webs were mostly marked as 'Gilford linens', and, after the introduction of linen seals, were nearly all sealed there. The Dromore merchants also transacted an important business; the finer fabrics had even acquired the name of 'Dromores', and a great quantity of the higher numbers is still woven in and around that town, but principally for the Banbridge manufacturers. At present comparatively very little business is done at either of those places, the entire trade of this part of the country having concentrated itself in the vicinity of Banbridge, which has thus become one of the most important inland manufacturing towns in Ireland. Linen of every description is manufactured and bleached in the neighbourhood: at Brookfield, Huntly Glen, Seapatrick, Millmount, Ballydown, and Ashfield are manufacturers on a large scale, for whom more than 66,000 webs are annually finished, comprising linens of various quality, sheeting, diapers, damasks, drills, cambrics, etc., by a vast number of weavers, who work in their own dwellings and are dispersed over the surrounding parishes. There are very extensive bleach-greens at Ballievey, Ballydown, Clibborn Vale, Millmount, Milltown, Springvale, Mill-Park, Hazelbank, Banford, and Mountpleasant, where 185,710 webs were bleached and finished in 1834, being nearly equal to the entire quantity bleached in this county at the end of the last century. At Seapatrick is an extensive establishment for weaving union cloths by machinery, in which are employed 100 power-looms impelled by a water-wheel 15 feet in diameter and 22 feet broad on the face. There are also very large thread manufactories for home consumption and exportation at Huntley Glen, Milltown, and Banbridge; a mill for spinning linen yarn at Coose, and adjoining it, chymical works for the supply of the bleachers. These different establishments provide employment for more than 2000 persons connected with this branch of the linen trade alone. Branches of the Provincial Bank of Ireland and of the Northern and Bel fast banking companies have been established here. The situation of the town on the great north road to Belfast, and in the centre of a fertile and highly cultivated district watered by the Bann, is very advantageous to its interests. It is within three miles of the Newry and Lough Neagh canal, to which a branch may be formed at little Expense; this improvement appears to have been at one period contemplated, from an excavation which is still traceable from Millmount down the valley on the south side of the Bann. Within an extent of four miles there are six good stone bridges over the Bann, besides several of wood: in 1690 there was not one bridge over this river throughout its entire course of 36 miles, from the mountains of Mourne to Lough Neagh. The Marquess of Downshire is proprietor of the town and a large tract of land in its vicinity. The principal seats in the neighbourhood are Ballievey House, the residence of G. Crawford, Esq., Ballyvalley: of the Rev. J. Davis; Millmount, of R. Hayes, Esq; Brookfield, of Brice Smyth, Esq.; Huntley Glen, of Hugh Dunbar, Esq.; the glebehouse, of the Rev. D. Dickinson; Edenderry, of W. A. Stewart, Esq.; Seapatrick House, of F. W. Hayes, Esq. ; Lenaderg Cottage, of T. Weir, Esq.; and Banview, of G. Little, Esq. There are also several large and handsome houses in the town, the residences of wealthy merchants and professional gentlemen ; and the farm-houses in the vicinity are built in a superior style of convenience and comfort. The market is on Monday, and is abundantly supplied with all kinds of provisions' and with pedlery and other commodities: the sale of yarn and brown linens, formerly very extensive, has declined since the new system of spinning and manufacturing was established, but considerable quantities of both are still disposed of. The market-house, situated in the centre of the town, close to the viaduct, is a large and handsome edifice surmounted by a dome, and was built by the Marquess of Downshire in 1834, at an expense of £2000: A brown linen hall was also erected by him in 1817, and a market-place for meal and grain in 1815. Fairs are held on the first Monday in every month: and fairs for horses, cattle, sheep, pigs, and manufactured goods are held on Jan. 12th, first Saturday in March, June 9th, August 26th, and Nov. 16th; the last is a very noted fair for horses. Petty sessions are held once a fortnight, and here is a chief station of the constabulary police. The parochial church, situated in this town, is a handsome cruciform edifice, with a tower surmounted by a spire, recently built at an expense of about £3000, of which sum £1500 was granted as a gift by the late Board of First Fruits, and the residue was provided by private contributions, of which £600 was subscribed by the Marquis of Downshire, who also gave the site: it is capable of accommodating 1800 persons. There is a meeting-house for Presbyterians in connexion with the Synod of Ulster, of the third class, and, at a short distance from the town, one for Seceders; besides a place of worship each for Wesleyan and Primitive Methodists. A school, in which about 60 boys and 50 girls are taught, is endowed with £50 per annum and 1 and a half acre of land the school premises, including residences for the master and mistress, were built by subscription, towards which the Marquess of Downshire contributed £90. Here is also a dispensary. Within half a mile from the town, on the Dromore road, a sulphureous chalybeate spring has been lately discovered, the water of which having been analysed is found to equal that of Aix la Chapelle, and is efficacious in scorbutic complaints. This is the birth-place of the late Baron McClelland, third baron of the Exchequer, and near the town was born Dr. Dickson, Bishop of Down and Connor. See SEAPATRICK.

BANGOR

BANGOR, a sea-port, incorporated market and posttown, and a parish, partly in the barony of LOWER CASTLEREAGH, but chiefly in that of ARDES, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 11 and a half miles (N.E.by E.) from Belfast, 21 Miles (N.) from Downpatrick, and 91 and a half miles (N. by E.) from Dublin, containing 9355 inhabitants, of which number, 2741 are in the town. The origin and early history of this ancient town are involved in some obscurity, and have been variously described by different writers. The most authentic records concur in stating that, about the year 555, St. Comgall founded here an abbey of Regular Canons, which may have led to the formation of a town, if one did not exist previously, and over which he presided fifty years, and died and was enshrined in it. Some time subsequently to the foundation of the abbey, a school was established here under the personal direction of St. Carthagus, which in progress of time became one of the most eminent seminaries in Europe, and was resorted to by numbers of young persons of distinction from various parts, and, according to some writers, when Alfred founded or restored the university of Oxford, he sent to the great school at Bangor for professors. In 613 the town was destroyed by fire, and in 674 the abbey was burnt. In the beginning of the ninth century they suffered severely from the predatory incursions of the Danes, in one of which, about the year 818, these merciless marauders massacred the abbot and about 900 monks. In 1125 it was rebuilt by Malachy O'Morgair, then abbot, with the addition of an oratory of stone, said by St. Bernard to have been the first building of stone and lime in Ireland ; and from which this place, anciently called the "Vale of Angels," derived the name of Beanchoir, now Bangor, signifying the 'White Church,' or 'Fair Choir'. Malachy was soon afterwards appointed to the see of Connor, and held with it the abbacy of Bangor till his preferment to the archbishoprick of Armagh. The abbey continued to flourish and was endowed with extensive possessions, which after the conquest were considerably augmented by the kings of England: amongst its lands was a townland in the Isle of Man, called Clenanoy, which the abbot held on the singular condition of attending the king of that island at certain times. In 1469, the buildings having fallen into decay through the abbot's neglect. Pope Paul II. transferred the possession of the abbey from the Regular Canons to the Franciscans, who continued to hold it till the dissolution. After that period, a great part of its lands was either granted to or seized by the O'Nials, who kept possession till the rebellion of Con O'Nial in the reign of Elizabeth, when it was forfeited to the Crown. Jas. 1., on his accession to the throne, found the northern part of Ireland in a deplorable condition, and almost depopulated, and in the third year of his reign, resolving to plant English and Scottish colonies in Ulster, granted the site of the abbey, with all its former possessions in this county, to Sir James Hamilton, afterwards created ber of Scots from Dunlop in Ayrshire, accompanied by their own minister, Robert Blair, who, although a Presbyterian, was presented to the church living of Bangor, and ordained in 1623 according to the Presby terian form, the Bishop of Down officiating as a presbyter: he was afterwards appointed Scottish chaplain to Chas. 1. From him were descended Robert Blair, of Athelstoneford, author of a poem called 'The Grave' and the celebrated Hugh Blair, D.D., of Edinburgh, the former his grandson and the latter his great-grandson. From Sir J. Hamilton are descended, either lineally or collaterally, the families of Bangor, Dufferin, Killileigh, and some others of principal note in Ulster. In 1689, the advanced army of Wm. III. arrived here in seventy sail of transports under the command of Duke Schomberg, and disembarked at Groomsport, fishing village about a mile from the town, where they encamped for the night; being well received and finding plenty of provisions, the transports, which had been furnished with supplies, sailed back to Chester for a reinforcement of troops. The town is advantageously situated on the south side of Belfast Lough or Carrickfergus bay, and on the direct sea coast road from Belfast to Donaghadee, in 1831 it contained 563 houses, most of which are indifferently built, and is much frequented for sea-bathing during the summer. The streets are neither paved nor lighted, but are kept very clean ) and the inhabitants are but indifferently supplied with water. There is a public library; and an Historical Society has been recently formed in connection with it. The cotton manufacture is carried on to a considerable extent in the town and neighbourhood, and affords employment to a great number of the inhabitants of both sexes in the weaving, sewing, and ornamental branches. It was first established here in the finer branches between the years 1783 and 1786, by the late George Hannay, who, if not the first, was at least one of the first persons who introduced that department of the manufacture into the North of Ireland. Two spinning factories were subsequently erected under the patronage of the late Rt. Hon. Col. R. Ward, who constantly resided here and took an active interest in the improvement of the town, one was built by two gentlemen from Scotland in 1800: who conducted it till 1813, when it was purchased by a company, who kept the concern, in full work till 1526; when it became the property of one of the partners, who now retains it: the other, in which Col. Ward held a share, and of which, on the dissolution of the partnership by the death of Mr. Hannay, he be came sole proprietor, was built in 1804. The number of persons of both sexes constantly employed in these two factories varies from 260 to 280: those engaged in the weaving and sewing branches of the trade being dispersed over the parish, as well as resident in and immediately around the town, cannot so easily be enumerated. Many operatives from Belfast find employment, and agents have been commissioned by the Glasgow merchants to get goods manufactured here, from the superior manner in which the weaving and sewing are executed. The linen trade is also carried on to a limited extent, chiefly for home consumption. The trade of the port is inconsiderable: black cattle, horses, grain, and flax are exported: the only imports are coal and timber. The bay is well sheltered, and affords good anchorage in deep water for vessels detained by an unfavourable wind, and the harbour is capable of great improvement, although attempts made at the expense of individuals have failed. A small pier was built about the year 1760, by means of a parliamentary grant of £500 to the corporation for promoting and carrying on the inland navigation of Ireland. The market is on Tuesday, but is not well attended: the market-house was built of late years by the lords of the manor. Fairs for black cattle, horses, and pedlery are held on Jan. 12th. May 1st, Aug. 1st, and Nov. 22nd. The only toll or custom which appears to have been ever paid was that of the " tongues " of cattle slaughtered in the market, which was claimed by the provost, but has been relinquished. The mail coach runs daily to and from Belfast. A constabulary police force, and an establishment of the coastguard in connection with the Donaghadee district, are stationed here. The inhabitants were incorporated by charter of the 10th of Jas. 1. (1613), under the style of "The Provost, Free Burgesses, and Commonalty of the Borough of Bangor:" the corporation under the charter consists of a provost, 12 other free burgesses, and an unlimited number of freemen, with two serjeants-at-mace, but of whom only one town-serjeant is now appointed. The provost is elected from and by the free burgesses annually on the Feast of St. John (June 24th), and is sworn into office at Michaelmas; and the free burgesses are appointed during good behaviour, as vacancies occur, by a majority of the provost and remaining free burgesses: there is no separate class of freemen distinct from the free burgesses. The borough returned two members to the Irish parliament until the Union, when the £15,000 granted in compensation for the abolition of its franchise was awarded in moieties to Henry Thomas, Earl of Carrick, and the trustees of the estate of Nicholas, Viscount Banner: the right of election was confined to the provost and free burgesses, and the provost was the returning officer. The charter constituted the provost clerk of the market and judge of a borough court of record, to be held every Saturday, with jurisdiction in personal actions to the amount of live marks, but it does not appear that this court has ever been held. Petty sessions are held once a fortnight, and a manorial court every third Thursday before the seneschal with jurisdiction to the amount of £2, late currency: the proceedings are by attachment or civil bill. A court leet is held by the seneschal once a year, at which constables for the several townlands in the manor are appointed. The manor is held in moieties by Viscount Bangor and a member of the same family, Mr. Ward, a minor, who is the representative of the Earl of Carrier a former proprietor. The property of the corporation consists of several plots of ground lying in various directions around the town, and containing altogether 59a. 1r. and 18p.,now occupied in very small lots and at low rents by 43 tenants, and producing a gross rental of £52. 13. 2. per annum, which is generally applied to public and useful objects. The limits of the borough include the town and a small surrounding district, locally termed 'the corporation', the exact boundaries of which are uncertain. The parish is bounded on the north by the bay of Belfast, on the east bv the Northern channel, on the south by the parishes of Donaghadee and Newtownardes, and on the west by that of Hollywood. It contains the Copeland islands, including which it comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 17027 statute acres, of which 12,597 and a quarter are in the barony of Ardes; the greater part is good arable and pasture land, mostly in excellent cultivation, especially the extensive estate of Portavo, and there are several others in the parish little inferior to it in point of husbandry ) the farm-buildings are neat and comfortable, and the peasantry are of moral and very industrious habits. The first Parochial Ploughing Society in Ireland was established here in 1816, by the exertions and under the patronage of J. Rose Clealand, Esq., from which may be dated the origin of the North-east Farming Society and the commencement of agricultural improvement in the North of Ireland. Bangor moss is now nearly exhausted, and is gradually being brought into cultivation; but there is a large extent of bog called Cotton, and in the townland of Ballow is a small bog, in which were found the skeletons of several elks, the head of one of which, with the antlers, measuring nine feet from tip to tip, is preserved in the Royal Institution at Belfast. Several streams on which are corn and flax-mills intersect the parish, and there are three windmills for corn. The neighbouring bays produce a variety of fish, oysters of large size are taken in abundance. The surrounding scenery is pleasingly diversified, and enriched in some parts with stately timber, chiefly fir and oak, and in the vicinity of the several gentlemen's seats are thriving plantations of beech, sycamore, ash and poplar, of comparatively modern growth. The principal seats are Ballyleidy, that of Lord Dufferin, a handsome and spacious mansion pleasantly situated in a rich and extensive demesne, Banger Castle, late the seat of the Rt. Hon. Col. Ward, surrounded with extensive grounds tastefully laid out; Crawfordsburn, of W. Sharman Crawford, Esq., M.P., pleasantly situated on the shore, Portavo, of D. Kerr, Esq., in a well-planted and richly cultivated demesne ; House, of J. Rose Cleland, Esq., both embellished with thriving plantations. Slate is found in several parts, but has been only procured in one quarry, which has not been worked sufficiently deep to produce a quality capable of resisting the action of the atmosphere. There are also mines of coal, especially on the estate of Lord Dufferin, whose father opened and worked them on a small scale, since which time they have been abandoned. and a lead mine was worked here to some extent about thirty years since, in which copper ore and manganese were also found. The living is an impropriate curacy, in the diocese of Down, and in the alternate patronage of Viscount Bangor and Ward, esq., in whom the rectory is impropriate. The parish is tithe-free, except two townlands, the property of Lord Dufferin, which pay tithe amounting to £52. 6. 9.; the curacy is endowed with a money payment of £55.7.8. per ann. by the impropriators. The church was built near the site of the old abbey, in 1623, and a very neat tower and spire were subsequently added to it by a bequest of the late A. Moore, Esq., of Tyrone. In attempting to enlarge it, in 1832, the foundation was so much disturbed by injudicious excavations that it was found necessary to take it down, with the exception of the tower; and a spacious and handsome structure, in the later style of English architecture, was erected in the following year, at an expense of £935, which was defrayed by the parishioners, aided by subscriptions to a considerable amount from some of the landed proprietors. There is a very good glebehouse, with a glebe of 12 Cunningham acres. In the R. C. divisions this parish forms part of the union or district of Newtownardes ; but there is no chapel within its limits. There are two meeting-houses for Presbyterians, the first was built originally about the year 1650, by a congregation which began the erection of a new and beautiful building in 1831, and the other was built in 1829 by a new congregation: they are both in connection with the Synod of Ulster, and one is of the first and the other of the third class. The Primitive and Wesleyan Methodists have also each a place of worship. A school for girls and an infants' school are supported by the executors of the late Col. Ward, an infants' school is also supported by Mrs. Trench at Ballyleidy is a school for girls, founded and supported by Lady Dufferin, a school for boys and girls at Crawfordsburn built in 1832, by the late Lord Dufferin, is supported with a bequest by the late Mr. John McGowan and other contributors, and there are two national schools at Crawfordsburn and Conlig, besides six other schools in the parish, aided by subscriptions. In these schools are about 460 boys and 340 girls, many of the latter of whom are clothed in each under the benevolent patronage of Lady Dufferin, and there are also eight private pay schools, in which are about 120 boys and 50 girls, and eleven Sunday schools. The first Sunday school in Ireland was formed at Rath-Gael in 1788, by J. R. Cleland, Esq. Here is a dispensary, a mendicity society is supported by subscription, and there are a friendly society and a savings bank. Adjoining the town is a property called 'Charity Lands', let for £42. 11. 1. per annum, which is applied towards the support of some of the above institutions and other charitable purposes. Of the ancient abbey there is only a small fragment remaining in part of the garden wall of the glebe-house. Near the quay is an old building supposed to have been used as a custom-house, the tower of which has been converted into dwelling-houses. Vestiges of 25 raths and forts may be traced in the parish, the largest was Rath Gael, or 'fort of the strangers', which extended over more than two acres and was encompassed by a double vallum; part of it is now occupied by the plantations and house of that name. Druidical relics have been frequently found in various parts of the parish. Christian O'Conarchy, the first abbot of Mellifont, was born at or near this place, he was consecrated Bishop of Lismore about the year 1150, and was constituted the pope's legate in Ireland; he died in 1186, William Hamilton, a very ingenious poet was also born here in 1704; his works were printed in 12mo. at Edinburgh, in 1760, eight years after his death. Bangor gives the titles of Viscount and Baron to the family of Ward, to whom the town and a considerable portion of the parish belong.

BRIGHT

BRIGHT, a parish, in the barony of LECALE, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 3 miles (S. by E.) from Downpatrick, containing 2030 inhabitants. This parish is situated on the road from Downpatrick to Killough, and comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 5544 and a half statute acres, of which 5503 are applotted under the tithe act. The land, with a trifling exception, is all in an excellent state of cultivation, and there is neither waste land nor bog. Oakley, the handsome residence of J. Birney, Esq., is situated in a fertile demesne of 168 acres, tastefully disposed and embellished with some of the finest timber in the county. The parish was formerly one of the six which constituted the union and the corps of the deanery of Down, from which it was separated by act of council in 1834, when, with the townland of Carradressy, which formerly belonged to Kilclief but was annexed to Bright by the same act, it was constituted a separate and distinct parish. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Down, and in the patronage of the Crown: the tithes amount to £583.18. 9. The church, a small edifice in the Grecian style, erected in 1745, is situated on the summit of an eminence, and is an excellent landmark for mariners: it contains an elegant monument to the memory of Lord Lecale. There is neither glebe-house nor glebe. In the R. C. divisions it is the head of a union or district, comprising also the parish of Rathmullen, and containing three chapels, situated respectively at Conierstown in Bright, and at Killough and Rossglass in Rathmullen. Here is a school of about 80 boys and 50 girls, for which a school-house in the churchyard was built by subscription; also a pay school, in which are about 20 boys and 20 girls. Near the church are the ruins of Bright castle ; and about a mile and a quarter to the west are those of Castle Screen, built within the area of a Danish rath, near which are the remains of the ancient abbey of Erynagh, founded by Magnell Makenlefe, King of Ulster, Sept. 8th, 1126 or 1127. This abbey was garrisoned against De Courcy in 1177, who, for that reason, levelled it with the ground and transferred its possessions to the abbey of Inch, which he subsequently founded in the Isle of Inis Courcy, on the ruins of a pagan temple. A circle of upright stones and other Druidical remains are still existing near the spot.

BRYANSFORD

BRYANSFORD; a village, in the parish of KILCOO, barony of UPPER IVEAGH, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 2 and a half miles (S.) from Castlewellan; containing 185 inhabitants. This village, which is situated on the road from Newry to Newcastle, contains about 30 houses neatly built, chiefly in the Elizabethan style, the gardens in front of which give it a comfortable and rural appearance, and the surrounding scenery is agreeably diversified. Tollymore Park, the seat of the Earl of Roden, is a beautiful residence situated in extensive grounds embellished with some of the finest larch trees in the country; it is approached by three noble entrances, called respectively the barbican, the central, and the hilltown ; the central entrance from the village is through a very lofty archway, and in the lodge is kept a book for entering the names of visitors, the grounds are always open to the public. There is a good inn and posting-house, with every accommodation for families. The parish church of Kilcoo, a spacious edifice with a lofty embattled tower, is situated in the village; and at a short distance to the north of it is a R. C. chapel, belonging to the union of Bryansford or Lower Kilcoo; it is a neat edifice in the later English style, erected in 1831 at an expense of £900, on a site given by the Earl of Roden. A school for boys, built in a 1826, is supported by the same nobleman; and adjoining it is a circulating library also maintained by the Earl and gratuitously open to all the people of the village: there is a female school, built in 1822 and supported wholly by the Countess of Roden. See KILCOO.