Donaghadee
|
Donaghadee Harbour and lighthouse |
Donaghadee (in
Irish:
Domhnach Daoi, ie Daoi's Church) is a small
town in
County Down,
Northern Ireland, situated on the east coast, about 18 miles from
Belfast and about eight miles north east of
Newtownards. The
fishing port lies on the
Ards Peninsula about five miles south east of
Bangor. It had a population of 6,470 people in the
2001 Census. The town boasts a number of pubs, including
Grace Neill's - the oldest pub in
Ireland, opened in
1611 as the 'King's Arms'.
Harbour and Lighthouse
Donaghadee is probably best known for its
lighthouse and
harbour. There has been a haven for ships at Donaghadee (or the 'Dee) for centuries, and there's been a harbour since at least the
17th century. Viscount Montgomery's harbour (
1626; improved
1640), superseding what had hitherto been probably only a small
jetty, was built and maintained as a result of the
Royal Warrant of
1616 which limited travel between the
Ards and the
Rhins of Galloway to this port, and that at
Portpatrick also owned by Montgomery. It was described by Harris in
1744 as 'a curving quay about 400 feet long and 22 feet wide built of uncemented stones'. It ran from the shore at the north end of the Parade in a broad arc, bent against the open sea, towards the southern end of the present north pier. Much patched and decrepit, the
quay was virtually rebuilt, though along the original line, between
1775 and
1785 by the landlord,
Daniel Delacherois, probably with the help of
John Smeaton, the distinguished
civil engineer who had apparently made earlier more elaborate plans for extending the harbour, and who had just rebuilt
Portpatrick harbour. The old quay remained until after the completion of the new harbour, and then, despite its continued favour by local fishermen, was removed for local wall building about
1833. (It appears in the
1832 drawing but not on the first O.S. map of
1834).
|
Original plans by John Rennie |
The foundation stone of the new harbour was laid by the
Marquis of Downshire on
1 August 1821. The initial plans and surveys for this ambitious undertaking had been made by
John Rennie Senior, the celebrated engineer whose works included
Waterloo,
Southwark and
London Bridges over the
Thames. He, however, died within two months of work beginning, and was succeeded by his son, John, later
Sir John Rennie, who had as his resident engineer a fellow Scot, the seasoned marine builder,
David Logan, who had assisted
Robert Stevenson at the
Bell Rock Lighthouse (
1807-
1810). The new harbour had to have greater depth to accommodate
steam packets. Rock blasted from the sea bed, within the harbour area and further south in what became known as the
Quarry Hole at
Meetinghouse Point was used to form the outer slopes of the two piers; but the inner faces were built of limestone from the
Moelfre quarries of
Anglesea. This 'Anglesea marble' lends itself to the finest
ashlar dressing and the new piers remain a triumph of stone carving. The flights of steps display special skill in the deep diagonal binding of each solid step, providing a typically robust engineer's response to the wear of seaboots and waves alike. The harbour consists of two independent piers running north westwards out to sea; parallel nearer the shore, they converge at the outer ends to form a harbour mouth 150 feet wide. At low tide the water in the harbour is fifteen feet deep
The Moat
The
Moat in Donaghadee was built to house the explosives for the blasting involved in the construction of the harbour. It is one of the most prominent features of the town. The
Motte, or the Moat as it is known, dates back to
1818. Today it is part of a park, giving views across the town and seawards towards the
Copeland Islands. The original mound was of Norman origin, when a
motte and bailey stood on the site. It was initially used as a defensive structure, and provided an excellent look-out post.
Visitors can also enjoy a number of scenic walks, including the marine walk at
The Commons, which comprises a 16-acre semi-cultivated open space with
bowls,
tennis,
putting and an
adventure playground.
*
Irish Rebellion of 1798 - On the morning of Pike Sunday,
10 June 1798 a force of
United Irishmen, mainly from
Bangor, Donaghadee,
Greyabbey and
Ballywalter attempted to occupy the town of
Newtownards. They met with
musket fire from the market house and were defeated.
*The lifeboat station at Donaghadee harbour, founded in
1910, is one of the most important on the Irish coast. RNLB
Sir Samuel Kelly is a famous lifeboat once based in Donaghadee and now on show and preserved at the harbour for her gallant efforts over 50 years ago. On
31 January 1953 the lifeboat rescued 32 survivors in the
Irish Sea from the stricken
Larneâ€"
Stranraer car ferry,
MV Princess Victoria.
Donaghadee is classified as a Small Town by the
NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (ie with population between 4,500 and 10,000 people). On Census day (
29 April 2001) there were 6,470 people living in Donaghadee. Of these:
*19.4% were aged under 16 years and 26.3% were aged 60 and over
*47.5% of the population were male and 52.6% were female
*5.2% were from a
Catholic background and 90.0% were from a
Protestant background
*3.3% of people aged 16-74 were unemployed.
For more details see:
NI neighbourhood Information Service*
Ballywalter Community Online*
Culture Northern Ireland*
Bangor FM - local radio station*
Donaghadee Market House*
Rotary Club of Donaghadee*
Grace Neill's*
Lighthouses in Ireland*
List of towns in Northern Ireland*
List of villages in Northern Ireland
