Castledawson, United Kingdom
Castledawson is a town of 2,263 people in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom.
Why visit Castledawson
Townapedia lists 3 museums and landmarks, 2 parks and trails, 7 places to eat and 1 place to stay in and around town.
Highlights include Bellaghy Bawn, Seamus Heaney Homeplace and Moyola Park.
Weather in Castledawson
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Castledawson
Castledawson is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is mostly within the townland of Shanemullagh (from Irish an Seanmhullach 'the old hilltop', IPA:[ˈanˠˈʃanˠˌwʊl̪ˠəx]), about four miles from the north-western shore of Lough Neagh, and near the market town of Magherafelt. In the 2011 census, it had a population of 2,289.
From the Wikipedia article Castledawson (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Museums and landmarks3
Bellaghy Bawn
Museum · 2.7 mi
Museum in Bellaghy, Northern Ireland, UK
Seamus Heaney Homeplace
Museum · 2.7 mi
Museum in Bellaghy, Northern Ireland, UK
Parks, trails and playgrounds2
Restaurants and cafes7
Where to stay1
History
The village sits on the River Moyola and was originally called "Dawson's Bridge". The bridge that crossed the river here was once the largest single span stone bridge in Ireland. The village was named after its 'castle' (actually a large manor house) built by Joshua Dawson in 1713. He was Chief Secretary for Ireland and founded the village in 1710. The Dawson estate, Shanemullagh, shares its name with the original townland name. The Dawson family also founded Christ Church, on the edge of that estate, in the early 18th century.
On 29 June 1912, a large group of Ancient Order of Hibernians members, allegedly drunk after having held a parade, clashed with a party of Presbyterian Sunday School children in Castledawson, who were returning from their annual excursion, in what became known as the Castledawson Incident. The prominent Presbyterian reverend James Armour laid the blame for the incident on alcohol and "the mad Orangemen of the locality," who he believed may have set up the incident. The response to this incident saw rioting in Belfast that resulted in roughly 2,000 Catholic shipyard workers and 500 Protestant Home Rulers being violently driven from their jobs at the Workman and Clarke shipyard.
Read more of the history
In March 1922, during the Irish War of Independence, the Irish Republican Army shot dead an off-duty Special Constable while carrying out a bomb attack on the Moyola Bridge at Castledawson.
In 1943, Nestlé built and opened a factory that made sweetened condensed milk. However, it was closed in the 1970s. Today it is the home of the award-winning Ditty's Bakery and Moyola Precision Engineering, a noted innovator of aerospace components.
The River Moyola is popular with anglers and has managed stocks of salmon (but also has perch, eel, trout, bream and pike). Dominating the horizon to the south-west of the village is a dramatic ráth.
From the History section of Castledawson on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Notable people from Castledawson
Seamus HeaneyIrish poet, playwright, translator, lecturer (1939–2013)Photo: Gotfryd, Bernard, photographer, Public domain
Ciaran GribbinNorthern Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist and producerPhoto: Eva Rinaldi, CC BY-SA 2.0- Bobby TrainorNorthern Irish footballer
- Fred CatherwoodBritish politician (1925-2014)
- George Robert DawsonAnglo-Irish politician
- Marian DonnellyNorthern Irish politician (born 1938)
Born in Castledawson, according to Wikidata (CC0). Each name links to its Wikipedia article.
Churches and places of worship4
Shopping1
Gas and EV charging2
Schools, colleges and libraries2
Map of Castledawson
22 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Belfast International Airport (BFS) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 16 miles away.
- Magherafelt 2 mi southwest, about 4 min by car
- Maghera 6 mi northwest, about 10 min by car
- Moneymore 7 mi southwest, about 12 min by car
- Portglenone 7 mi northeast, about 12 min by car
- Randalstown 11 mi east, about 17 min by car
- Cookstown 12 mi southwest, about 19 min by car
- Cullybackey 12 mi northeast, about 19 min by car
- Ballymena 13 mi northeast, about 21 min by car
- Antrim 15 mi east, about 24 min by car
- Coalisland 17 mi south, about 28 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Towns near Castledawson
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Keep exploring
Local news
Headlines from INDB.
Reviews, tips and questions
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Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Castledawson2, Kenneth Allen, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Moyola Park, Front, Dysonology, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Seamus Heaney HomePlace entrance, 1TWO3Writer, CC0
- Bellaghy Bawn Information Board, Michael Spence, CC BY-SA 4.0
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