Enjoying north-west Northern Ireland

Ulster American Folk Park

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Attraction | "Experience the Past"

The blacksmith Photo - Ulster American Folk Park, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland

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We are not Irish or American so we thought that our time here would be short. How wrong we were. This outdoor museum which tells the story of emigration from Ulster to America in the 18th and 19th centuries is full of interest to everyone and the exhibits, which are spread out over quite a large area, are first class . The Park brings to life the human drama behind Irish emigration, telling the remarkable story of those that crossed the Atlantic for the New World of North America. It can, however, apply equally to those who found their way to Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and elsewhere.We start our journey at the Matthew T Mellon Visitor Centre. This has information and toil...Read More

We are not Irish or American so we thought that our time here would be short. How wrong we were. This outdoor museum which tells the story of emigration from Ulster to America in the 18th and 19th centuries is full of interest to everyone and the exhibits, which are spread out over quite a large area, are first class . The Park brings to life the human drama behind Irish emigration, telling the remarkable story of those that crossed the Atlantic for the New World of North America. It can, however, apply equally to those who found their way to Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and elsewhere.

We start our journey at the Matthew T Mellon Visitor Centre. This has information and toilet facilities, a cafe and shop. The cafe provides a range of hot and cold meals, including tea/coffee and scones, soup, freshly made sandwiches and confectionery. At the shop we find a selection of Northern Ireland craft products, such as jams and locally made jewellery, traditional-style confectionary and an interesting selection of books. It also provides access to the excellent Emigrants Exhibition and a temporary exhibition gallery.

Our outside journey starts in the thatched cottages of Ulster, including the famous "Mellon" homestead, continues aboard a crowded sailing ship and finishes among the homesteads of the American frontier. In the process you go through three different sections. All are important to see. In the Old World we liked the blacksmith’s forge, the weaver’s cottage and the replica of a Presbyterian church. An early highlight, however, is undoubtedly the Mellon Homestead. This was built by Andrew Mellon. He and his family emigrated to the USA in 1818 and later his son, Thomas, became a lawyer and a judge and then later in life he set up the Mellon Bank which is still an important financial institution.

We pass various other buildings - an ancestral home, a catholic church, a schoolhouse, a post office, and the boyhood home of John Hughes who eventually became the first Catholic Archbishop of New York. The highlight of this section, and probably the highlight of the Park, is the Ulster Street. The Park claims this is the finest collection of original, traditional 19th century Ulster shop fronts in the world. It is very impressive. You pass a chemist, printer, grocer, saddler, ropeworks and more as you stroll down the street.

At the end of the street we enter the dock. In front of us is a replica of an early 1800s emigrant sailing ship. There is an original merchant’s office and a boarding house. We climb on board, wander around and see the conditions travellers would have experienced on a six to twelve week crossing. After awhile we exit into the Arrivals Area of the New World.

Immediately we are in an American Street, similar to those that would have greeted the emigrants. There is a general store, a tinsmiths, wheelwright’s workshop and a replica of the first Mellon Bank. From here we move onto a stone house, a log cabin, a log barn and some outbuildings. The impressive Pennsylvavia Log Farmhouse is a replica of the one which Thomas Mellon and his family some years after their arrival in the USA.
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Member Rating 5 out of 5 on September 9, 2012

Ulster American Folk Park

Castletown, Omagh, County Tyrone BT78 5QY
+44 (0)28 8224 3292

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Free Derry Corner

Best Of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Reminder of 'The Troubles'."

Call to Arms Photo - Free Derry Corner, Derry, Northern Ireland

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We, like most visitors to Derry, had heard about ‘The Troubles’, but it was not until we travelled through Northern Ireland that we realised the intensity of feeling. Londonderry was one of the areas of most feeling and you probably see this best today in the street murals that are scattered across the city. Although the famous "Hands across the divide" statue near Londonderry's city centre suggests that the catholic and protestant populations put aside their differences, the murals suggest otherwise. Those in loyalist areas feature paramilitary symbols, masked gunmen and scenes of historic battles like the Battle of the Boyne (in which 'king Billy' defeated the catholic army of James II) ...Read More

We, like most visitors to Derry, had heard about ‘The Troubles’, but it was not until we travelled through Northern Ireland that we realised the intensity of feeling. Londonderry was one of the areas of most feeling and you probably see this best today in the street murals that are scattered across the city. Although the famous "Hands across the divide" statue near Londonderry's city centre suggests that the catholic and protestant populations put aside their differences, the murals suggest otherwise.

Those in loyalist areas feature paramilitary symbols, masked gunmen and scenes of historic battles like the Battle of the Boyne (in which 'king Billy' defeated the catholic army of James II) and the Siege of Derry. Those in republican areas are equally sinister and each still paint a picture of separated communities and ongoing fighting.

To get a view of the loyalist murals we went into the working-class protestant neighbourhoods across the river Foyle. The east bank areas of Bond's Street, Lincoln Course and Sperrin Park are where you find most.
Londonderry's nationalist/republican murals are concentrated in the Bogside area to the west of the city centre. We left the city centre through Butcher Gate and found ourselves in catholic (Free) Derry. The Bogside saw much sectarian rioting and violence and this eventually led to the notorious 1972 "Bloody Sunday when 14 catholic civil rights protesters were shot. Several murals and memorials recall this event. The Battle of the Bogside between the local police and catholic inhabitants which lasted for three days in 1969 during which more than 1000 people were injured is also depicted.

Three local artists, known as the Bogside Artists, have created The People’s Gallery, a series of large-scale murals depicting the key events in Northern Ireland since "The Troubles". These murals and the artists involved have been critically acclaimed around the world.

While these murals present a window into the politics, people and history of Northern Ireland we left with the feeling that they somehow entrenched the differences between Londonderry’s communities and this can’t be good for the long-time future of this emerging country.
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Member Rating 4 out of 5 on September 9, 2012

Free Derry Corner
Square in Bogside
Londonderry, Derry

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Tower Museum

Best Of IgoUgo

Attraction | "In the Tower"

Entrance Photo - Tower Museum, Derry, Northern Ireland

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The tower looks impressive from the outside but when we go inside we find that it is home to two quite different but fascinating exhibitions. The museum was opened in 1992 and is centred on the O’Doherty Tower, a major landmark in the City. The O’Doherty Tower is a modern reconstruction of a medieval structure that was located on or near the site.Derry is one of the oldest inhabited settlements in Ireland so it is probably no surprise that the Story of Derry Exhibition is very interesting. After paying our Adult £4.20 and Senior/Student/Child £2.65 admission, we enter the Oak Grove to find out about the early settlements. From here we wind through Monastic Derry, Gaelic Derry and on to Pla...Read More

The tower looks impressive from the outside but when we go inside we find that it is home to two quite different but fascinating exhibitions. The museum was opened in 1992 and is centred on the O’Doherty Tower, a major landmark in the City. The O’Doherty Tower is a modern reconstruction of a medieval structure that was located on or near the site.

Derry is one of the oldest inhabited settlements in Ireland so it is probably no surprise that the Story of Derry Exhibition is very interesting. After paying our Adult £4.20 and Senior/Student/Child £2.65 admission, we enter the Oak Grove to find out about the early settlements. From here we wind through Monastic Derry, Gaelic Derry and on to Plantation Derry, the building of the city walls and the major changes that followed.

We see how the Siege of Derry had a major impact on many people and how the Geogian City grew in the 18th century. The 19th century was the making of Derry with trade and industry flourishing and the port playing an important part in this growth. We wondered how the Partition of Ireland would be handled but this and most recent events seem to be covered quite adequately. We guest this is why the museum has won both the Irish and British Museum of the Year awards. In a few short minutes we have gone from the first evidence of human habitation in 7000BC through to the troubles and the peace process.

The museum also houses ‘An Armada Shipwreck – La Trinidad Valencera’ exhibition. The exhibition contains artefacts recovered in Kinnagoe Bay, County Donegal, in the 1970s, from a galleon shipwrecked in 1588. We begin our visit on level 4 where we learn about the power struggle between England and Spain in the 16th century which led to the Spanish Armada sailing up the English Channel. The La Trinidad Valencera was one of the largest ships in the Armada Fleet but after being pursued by English vessels it decided to return towards Spain by sailing around Ireland. In 1588 it foundered in Kinnagoe Bay during a violent storm and was discovered nearly 400 years later by divers from the City of Derry Sub Aqua Club. The exhibition tells the story of the people involved, the soldiers and sailors aboard the Trinidad Valencera and the divers and archaeologists who discovered and excavated the ship.

As we make our way down to ground level we learn about the sinking of the ship, the discovery of the wreck and the excavation of the remains of the ship. We see the objects recovered by archaeologists including the ships cannons. On the first floor we see one of the impressive siege guns carried by the ship and an original wheel from the gun carriage.

This is not the best museum we have ever seen but it provides some good background to a Derry visit and is therefore recommended.
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Member Rating 4 out of 5 on September 9, 2012

Tower Museum
Union Hall Place
Londonderry, Derry, Northern Ireland BT48 6LU
028 7137 2411

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HIstoric Walls of Derry

Best Of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Walking the Walls"

Several restored cannons on wall Photo - HIstoric Walls of Derry, Derry, Northern Ireland

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Londonderry, or Derry, is the only remaining completely walled city in Ireland. Because of this it was pre-destined that the first thing we would do when we arrived in the city was to walk the walls. But this was not good enough. We had arranged for a local guide to take us around so we headed straight for the Tourist Information Office and met Adrian our guide from Derry Conflict Tours. We immediately head uphill to New Gate. Adrian tells us that there were four original gates to the Walled City - Bishop’s Gate, Ferryquay Gate, Butcher Gate and Shipquay Gate. Three further gates were added later and New Gate was one of them. We climb onto the wall and are immediately impressed. Clearly we...Read More

Londonderry, or Derry, is the only remaining completely walled city in Ireland. Because of this it was pre-destined that the first thing we would do when we arrived in the city was to walk the walls. But this was not good enough. We had arranged for a local guide to take us around so we headed straight for the Tourist Information Office and met Adrian our guide from Derry Conflict Tours.

We immediately head uphill to New Gate. Adrian tells us that there were four original gates to the Walled City - Bishop’s Gate, Ferryquay Gate, Butcher Gate and Shipquay Gate. Three further gates were added later and New Gate was one of them. We climb onto the wall and are immediately impressed. Clearly we are not the only ones because Adrian tells us that the walls are listed as one of the 1001 Historic Sites You Must See Before You Die by UNESCO.

The Walls, which are approximately 1.5km in circumference, form a walkway around the inner city. The Walls vary in width between 4 and 10 metres and the walk on the top is easy and pleasant. The first thing we notice is that the layout of the original town is still preserved in its Renaissance Style street plan. We look inwards to see St Columb’s Cathedral and outwards to see the Heritage Tower. Further on we come to St Augustine’s Church. This is known as the "Wee Church on the Walls" and the present building is said to be on the original monastic site of St. Columba. There are some famous graves in the graveyard but this is actually a living church today.

Just near here on the Double Bastion we see impressive Roaring Meg. This is one of the many cannon displayed throughout the city. Derry city claims Europe’s largest collection of cannon whose origins are known precisely. Many of them thundered in anger during the two seventeenth century sieges but then they lay silent and neglected until 2005 when the surviving 24 cannon were restored.

We learn that the walls were built during the period 1613 to 1618 by the Honourable Irish Society as defences for early settlers from England and Scotland. The most famous siege of Londonderry took place in 1688 /1689 and many thousands of people died of starvation. The siege lasted 105 days and ended when ships broke a wooden boom across the river erected by the Catholic army, and brought food to the city.

We continue our walk and at one point come off the wall to see the site of Bloody Sunday and the walls murals that still exist today. At the same time we enter Butcher Gate and walk to the centre of the old city at The Diamond. We can see all four original wall gates from this location. The cenotaph in the centre of the Diamond is a memorial to all those who died during World War I & II.

Adrian takes us back onto the wall and we move on to Hangmans Bastion. From here we look out towards the Guildhall and the River Foyle with its attractive Peace Bridge. Inside the walls we gaze at Tower Museum and decide that should be our next point of interest. We have not quite completed the full circumference of the town but have seen enough to agree that UNESCO is correct. This is something you must see.
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Member Rating 4 out of 5 on September 9, 2012

HIstoric Walls of Derry
West Bank of River Foyle
Londonderry, Derry
+44 (28) 7137 7577

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Dunluce Castle

Best Of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Fascinating Dunluce Castle"

Castle viewed from the funnel Photo - Dunluce Castle, Bushmills, Northern Ireland

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Coming from a place where castles have never existed, I find Europe’s castles quite fascinating. I remember stories of knights and armour, maidens and sieges, hot oil and cannon balls told to me in my younger days. To stay in a castle which has been converted to a hotel is a thrill but the real experience for me is to explore the ruins of something that once was so grand.Dunlace Castle on the northern coast of Northern Ireland fits my ideal just perfectly. The roofless ruins are a breathtaking sight as we first see them as we approach from Bushmills. The castle stands on a rocky outcrop, stark and foreboding with the ocean crashing at its feet and the white chalk cliffs of Portrush behind...Read More

Coming from a place where castles have never existed, I find Europe’s castles quite fascinating. I remember stories of knights and armour, maidens and sieges, hot oil and cannon balls told to me in my younger days. To stay in a castle which has been converted to a hotel is a thrill but the real experience for me is to explore the ruins of something that once was so grand.

Dunlace Castle on the northern coast of Northern Ireland fits my ideal just perfectly. The roofless ruins are a breathtaking sight as we first see them as we approach from Bushmills. The castle stands on a rocky outcrop, stark and foreboding with the ocean crashing at its feet and the white chalk cliffs of Portrush behind.
The castle as we see it today dates mainly from the late 16th century when the Scottish clan MacDonald’s descendents lived here, but the outer walls with their corner towers probably date from the time of their predecessors the MacQuillans.

We are initially surprised to find the castle is operated as a tourist attraction by the Northern Ireland Environment agency but we are pleased to see how well it is maintained and presented. Guided tours are offered but after looking at the entrance display we chose to wander around ourselves. From the information room we enter the Mainland Court, past lodgings that were built in the 1620s for visitors to the castle and then along the Funnel to a bridge. This is the only access onto the rock where the main castle sits.

It is thought that the original bridge was a natural rock structure then later a wooden drawbridge was supported by a masonry arch. We cross the bridge and enter the gatehouse complete with turrets and gun openings. Our attention is grabbed by a round tower and we climb as high as we can. We learn from signboards that this is the oldest part of the castle. There are several buildings here. Three are the remains of houses built by various masters of the place. The most impressive is the New House built in the 1620s. We see the walls of a great hall containing three large bay windows. Originally there were private rooms above here but these have all gone.

There is another round tower and in the floor there is an underground refuge, 700 years older than the castle itself. The final building is called the Inner Ward. There are some great coastal views from here and also evidence of the power of the sea as we see missing masonry that has collapsed over the cliff. This area was used as kitchens and workshops on the ground floor and had rooms for the family and guests above. According to local tradition, part of the castle fell into the sea one night in 1639 and the castle was abandoned a few years later when the Lord of the manor was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the Irish rebellion.

Our love of castles made this visit memorable but we were through in about an hour. Others may not find it so interesting and could perhaps be out in 30 minutes. The castle is open every day. Adult admission is five pounds and children and seniors are three pounds. As we leave we stop to look at the simple parish church which remains from the town of Dunluce, developed for Scottish settlers in the first few years of the 17th century.
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Member Rating 4 out of 5 on September 8, 2012

Dunluce Castle
87 Dunluce Road
Bushmills, Coleraine, County Antrim BT57 8UY
028 2073 1938

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