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*Musician [[Vedran Smailović]] lives here.
*Musician [[Vedran Smailović]] lives here.
*[[Northern Ireland|Northern Irish]] writer and literary critic, [[Forrest Reid]], died in Warrenpoint in 1947.
*[[Northern Ireland|Northern Irish]] writer and literary critic, [[Forrest Reid]], died in Warrenpoint in 1947.
*Liam Martin McCormack, who lives in New York City, Was born In Warrenpoint.


== See also ==
== See also ==

Revision as of 00:36, 11 June 2010

Warrenpoint
Warrenpoint from the Cooley Mountains, across Carlingford Lough
Population6,981 
Irish grid referenceJ145180
• Belfast44 mi (71 km)
District
County
CountryNorthern Ireland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townNEWRY
Postcode districtBT34
Dialling code028, +44 28
PoliceNorthern Ireland
FireNorthern Ireland
AmbulanceNorthern Ireland
UK Parliament
NI Assembly
Website[1]
List of places
UK
Northern Ireland
Down

Warrenpoint (Irish: an Phointe meaning "the point") is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the northern shore of Carlingford Lough. The town is sometimes known in Irish as Rinn Mhic Giolla Rua (anglicised Ringmackilroy) meaning "point of the red-haired servant" — this is the townland in which it lies.

It is known for its scenic location, the Maiden of the Mournes festival, the Blues on the Bay music festival and the the nearby Narrow Water Castle dating from the 1660s.

In the 2001 Census it had a population of 7,000.

History

What is now Warrenpoint long consisted of a small number of basic dwellings inhabited by people reliant on fishing for their survival and sustenance.

The name "Warrenpoint" is now believed to have been taken from the name of a family that lived here around the latter half of the 18th century. Father Bernard Trainor (who had an interest in place names of the area) mentioned that a family called “Waring” lived here and had a house called “Warings Point”

Walter Harris in 1744 stated that “Warrings Point” is about a mile or so North West of Rose Trevor. Later maps show the town as Warrens Point and then according to Bishop Crawford, the first mention of the name “Warrenpoint” occurred in 1835.

Its scenic beauty and coastal location instigated rapid development so that the population in 1824 was 500 and in 1831 was 1,000. In 1836 there was a school, a court house, a savings bank and a farming society.

Fairs were held once a month and a market every Friday. In the mid-19th century, Newry merchants obtained a government grant to create a tidal dock at the village, as prior to 1850 ships of above 150 tonnes could not get further up the lough than Narrow Water.

A railway connection opened on 9 May 1849,[1] increasing Warrenpoint's popularity as a holiday destination. and Warrenpoint became popular as a resort town. Thousands flocked to the resort every year, where most took the passenger ferry to Omeath in County Louth. The Warrenpoint railway station closed in January 1965. The Ferry remains in operation but only in the summer months from May to September.

A bandstand in the town park provided concerts and a swimming pool was built in 1908. The baths were opened by Captain Roger Hall on Whit Monday, the 8th of June in that year, but they are now closed to the public.

On 6 February 1921, during the Irish War of Independence, the Irish Republican Army ambushed an Ulster Special Constabulary (USC) patrol in Warrenpoint. The ambush took place on Seaview Road and one USC constable was killed.[2]

On 27 August 1979, during "the Troubles", the Provisional Irish Republican Army ambushed a British Army convoy at nearby Narrow Water Castle. Eighteen soldiers were killed – the British Army's greatest loss-of-life in a single incident during the conflict. This is often called the Warrenpoint ambush.

On 12th April 1989, "the Troubles" Joanne Reilly was killed by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in van bomb attack on Warrenpoint Royal Ulster Constabulary base. Inadequate warning given. [3]

Demographics

Warrenpoint is classified as a small town by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (ie with population between 4,500 and 10,000 people). On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 7,000 people living in Warrenpoint. Of these:

  • 26.7% were aged under 16 years and 16.8% were aged 60 and over
  • 48.3% of the population were male and 51.7% were female
  • 90.0% were from a Catholic background and 8.5% were from a Protestant background
  • 4.3% of people aged 16-74 were unemployed

For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service

Places of interest

Narrow Water Castle just outside the town is a three-storey tower house built in 1560 to protect the entrance to the Newry river estuary. Across the road is the new Narrow Water Castle built in 1840.

Carlingford Lough at Dawn.

Today a small passenger ferry service operates out of Warrenpoint to the village of Omeath in County Louth. The trip takes about fifteen minutes. Other cruises include trips to Narrow Water Castle and Bay & Harbour Cruises.

Two small inland lakes , the "Mill Dam" and the "Waterworks" offer a variety of fishing opportunities. A permit is needed to fish these lakes, which are located about 1km from the town centre.

Warrenpoint Promenade was used as a backdrop for Bundoran in the film The Butcher Boy, especially the exterior of the Star of the Sea Convent and the Edwardian swimming baths.

Education

People

See also

References

  1. ^ "Warrenpoint station" (PDF). Railscot - Irish Railways. Retrieved 2007-09-07.
  2. ^ http://www.dcu.ie/~foxs/irhist/august_1920.htm
  3. ^ http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/sutton/alpha/R.html

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Warrenpoint&oldid=367324812"