Archaeological Excavations In The Glens of Antrim: Past, Present & Future Cormac McSparron. QUB

The following slide show was presented by Cormac McSparron,Fieldwork director at The Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork QUB, to the society on Friday 22nd May in St. Mary’s Parish Centre Cushendall. It is reproduced here by kind permission of Cormac for which the society is most grateful.                   … Read more

“Archaeological Digs in The Glens Of Antrim: Past, Present and Future”

    Archaeological Digs in the Glens of Antrim: Past, Present and Future This illustrated talk featuring ‘Castle Carra’ will take place on Friday 22nd May at 8.30pm in St Mary’s Parish Centre, Cushendall.  Admission is free to members and non members are most welcome to attend(admission £3).   This lecture will summarise the main … Read more

Ballintoy’s Hidden History

    On Saturday 2 February 2013 the society launched ‘ Ballintoy’s Hidden History’ funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund’s All Our Stories programme to explore and tell the story of three less well-known sites in the Ballintoy area, namely Templastragh Church, Ballintoy Castle and an eighteenth-century school at White Park Bay.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               … Read more

GRAVESTONE INSCRIPTIONS FROM NAPPAN By Brian S. Turner KILLYCRAPPIN GRAVEYARD County Antrim O.S. Sheet 20. Grid Ref. 292225.

  Killycrappin is one of those private corners of Ireland for which we have no evidence that it has ever been anything else.  It is on that part of the steep coast of Antrim which runs from just north of Carnlough to Garron Point and is know as the ‘Largy’.  (Leargaidh – the side or … Read more

OTHER PENAL MASS SITES IN NORTH ANTRIM Rev. Patrick McKavanagh

With the destruction of buildings used for Catholic public worship during the sixteenth century Mass had to be celebrated in strange places, in private homes and huts, in sheds and stables or in the open air. Lest the situation should become unseemly, a Synod of the province of Armagh, which included North Antrim, decreed as … Read more

PENAL MASS SITES IN THE GLENS Rev. Patrick McKavanagh

A Royal Commission in 1622 reported that, “in the diocese of Down and Connor, only 16 churches were fit for the celebration of Divine ordnance, while 150 churches and chapels were decayed or in ruins”. In this short article, I am confining my survey to the modern Catholic parishes of Glenariffe, Cushendall, Cushendun and Glenravel. … Read more

ARCHAEOLOGICAL WALK–LAYDE CHURCHYARD. FRIDAY 16TH MAY. 7.30PM

An introduction to one of the oldest and most important historical sites in the Glens of Antrim by leading local archaeologist, Dr Colm Donnelly QUB.     Malachy Mc Sparran writes in ‘Survey of LAYDE GRAVEYARD’ pub. Glens of Antrim Historical Society…. “The Church is thought to have been founded by the sept McFall and … Read more

Local Archaeological Excavations: March 2014

The Historical Society has agreed to take part in a series of three archaeological excavations in conjunction with The Landscape Partnership and Queen’s University Belfast’s Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork.      Dominic O’Loan reports on the first dig.                                                                                  “The first dig took place from March 20th –March 27th on the sand dunes above Cushendun beach, opposite … Read more

ARCHAEOLOGICAL DIG- DEADLINE 4TH MARCH

The society has been invited to take part in an archaeological dig at Cushendun, from  18th – 28th March.  It is an opportunity for members to participate in this dig, however, numbers are limited and places will be allocated on a first- come basis. Any member wishing to be involved should contact the office between … Read more