Kilrea
Coordinates: 54°58′00″N 6°35′00″W / 54.966667°N 6.583333°W
Kilrea (pronounced /kɪlˈreɪ/ kil-RAY, from Irish: Cill Ria, meaning "church on the hill")[1][2] is a village, townland, historic town and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It gets its name from St. Patrick's Church of Ireland, which sits on Church Street looking over the town. It is near the River Bann, which marks the boundary between County Londonderry and County Antrim. In the 2011 Census it had a population of 2,724 people.[3]
History
There is a tradition that St Patrick visited the area during the fifth century, a story repeated recently in the book 'The Fairy Thorn' produced by Kilrea local historians. During the Plantation of Ulster Kilrea and the surrounding townlands were granted to the Worshipful Company of Mercers by King James I for settlement.[4] Their headquarters in Ulster were at nearby Movanagher on the banks of the River Bann. Today Kilrea is a market town and commercial centre of the surrounding district. The village is centred on 'The Diamond' which includes the town's War Memorial erected in honour of Kilrea men killed in the Great War.[5] The village is featured in the Orange song, Sprigs of Kilrea. It is also mentioned in the song Kitty the rose of Kilrea by The Irish Rover band.
The Troubles
Festival of the Fairy Thorn
A feature of Kilrea is its 'Fairy Thorn' tree in the grounds of First Kilrea Presbyterian Church. It is the focal point of the annual summer cross-community festival in the town.[6]
People
- Martin O'Neill
- Hannah Shields, second Irish woman to climb Mount Everest.[7]
- John Dallat, first nationalist mayor of the Borough of Coleraine
- Monica McWilliams
- Brian McAlary Irish international bowler
Railways
Kilrea railway station was opened by the Derry Central Railway on 18 February 1880.[8] It was taken over by the Northern Counties Committee in September 1901.
The station closed to passengers on 28 August 1950 by the Ulster Transport Authority.
Sport
- Kilrea Angling Club
- Kilrea Camogie Club
- Kilrea Golf Club
- Kilrea Pádraig Pearses GAC
- Kilrea United Football Club
- Manor Golf and Sports Club
- Go Pro Kart Racing Movanagher Road
- Kilrea Sports Complex
Education
- Kilrea Primary School
- St Columba's Primary School
- St Paul's College
- Crossroads Primary School
Religion
- Boveedy Presbyterian Church
- First Kilrea Presbyterian Church
- Kilrea Baptist Church
- Second Kilrea Presbyterian Church
- St Anne's Roman Catholic Church[9]
- St Patrick's Church of Ireland
- Drumagarner Roman Catholic Church
2011 Census
Kilrea is classified as an Intermediate Settlement by the NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (i.e., with population between 2,250 and 4,500 people). On Census day (22 March 2011) there were 2,724 people living in Kilrea. Of these:
- 23.27% were aged under 16 years and 14.5% were aged 60 and over
- 50.77% of the population were male and 49.23% were female
- 67.11% were from a Catholic background and 29.77% were from a Protestant background
- 6.46% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed
For more details see the match of location name: @Exact Match Of Location Name: Kilrea@4?
See also
References
- ↑ Placenames NI
- ↑ Placenames Database of Ireland
- ↑ match of location name: @Exact Match Of Location Name: Kilrea@4?
- ↑ Lewis's Topographical Directory of Ireland, 1837
- ↑ Ulster War Memorials
- ↑ Kilrea, Coleraine Northern Ireland Tourist Board website
- ↑ Everest climber is welcomed home - BBC News
- ↑ "Kilrea station" (PDF). Railscot - Irish Railways. Retrieved 2012-04-29.
- ↑ Kilrea Parish - Derry Diocese, Ireland
External links
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