Bellaghy Bawn
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Take a virtual tour of this site!  |
This 17th-century Vintners Company fortified house and bawn, was opened to the public in 1996. There are exhibitions on local natural history and history, and on poetry by local Nobel Laureate, Seamus Heaney and other contemporary Irish writers.
When this area was granted to the Vintners' Company of London in 1619, Sir Baptist Jones rented the land and built the bawn and the accompanying village to secure the region. This is now a complex, multi-period monument. The main house was lived in until as recently as 1987, and excavation in 1989-90 clarified the site's complicated development
The N bawn wall with the entrance has disappeared, but parts of the other walls survive. The house is probably of the 18th century, on the site of an original early17th-century house, and the excavated foundations of another 17th-century house can be seen against the W bawn wall. A 1622 drawing shows two large round towers at opposed NW and SE corners of the bawn, the SE one surviving, attached to the house. A gateway in the W wall leads to the outside of the bawn, where the recent brick buttresses are the latest in a long series of attempts to prop the leaning wall. Excavation showed it had been built over the ditch of a rath of the Early Christian period, also exploiting this eminence, and explaining the instability. In the house are historical and other displays featuring the work of Ulster poets, especially Seamus Heaney, who comes from this area. The resources include a film made for the bawn and a collection of Seamus Heaney's broadcasts.
Education
If you are planning a visit or looking for educational resources on this site, please visit this page.
Facilities
- Guided tours available
- Visitor CentreExhibition
- Audio Visual Room
- Toilets / Disabled Toilets
- Limited Wheelchair Acces
- Picnic Area
- Parking
Access & Booking
Opening hours from Easter 2009 - end September from 10am to 5pm Wednesday - Sunday
October - Easter - Open Wednesday 10am to 4pm and Sundays 12pm - 4pm
The House will also be open on Public and Bank Holidays throughout the year with the exception of Christmas/New Year week.
Admission: Adult - £2.00, Ch/OAP - £1.00, Ch under 11yrs - 50p, Family Rate - £5.00 (2 Adults & 4 Children)
Children under the age of 16 years must be accompanied by an adult.
For educational visits, please call the number below to arrange.
Getting Here
Bellaghy Bawn is situated two miles off the main Belfast to Londonderry road (A6). Turn right onto the B182/Deerpark Road signposted Bellaghy and continue to follow the B182 to Bellaghy. Bellaghy Bawn is the large white house on the hill to your left as you enter the town.
Contact Us
Castle Street
Bellaghy
Londonderry
BT45 8LA
Tel: (028) 7938 6812
