Greenisland, United Kingdom

In the 1800s, following the growth of Belfast towards the end of the 18th century, several bathing lodges used for summer recreation were established in the area. One such lodge existed until 2020 as the "Ravenhill Nursing Home", operated by the Northern Health and Social Care Trust. During this period, Bassett's directory of 1888 notes that the area was "devoted entirely to handsome residences occupied for the greater part by gentlemen engaged in commercial and professional pursuits in Belfast".

The Belfast-to-Ballymena railway line was opened in 1845, which travelled through the area, providing one of the first transport links to the town from both Belfast and Carrickfergus. The village was finally given the official name of Greenisland in 1893 when the Greenisland railway station was constructed in its present site. Improvements in transport and a growth in prosperity led to more semi-detached and terraced houses in the area immediately surrounding the railway station.

In 1859, the Christian Revival that swept Ulster arrived in Greenisland and an open-air service was held in the field below Longfield Farm (now known locally as Johnstone Farm) which is still standing on the Station Road. By 1860 the interdenominational Ebenezer Hall was built for worshippers on the Shore Road. This was then followed in 1912 when the Presbyterian Knockagh Hall was built on the Upper Road. Neither of these buildings survive, but the congregations of these two churches remain. With Greenisland Ebenezer Church of the Nazarene now in Longfield Gardens and Greenisland Presbyterian Church on the Upper Road. Over the years they have been joined by several other churches as Greenisland has grown.

Greenisland Primary School replaced a school in Trooperslane in 1938, when it was realised that children had to walk two miles to Trooperslane and back every day. On the opening day, pupils arrived at the Trooperslane school and then walked to the new school carrying armfuls of books, jars of ink and other learning materials.

During World War II, the new school's headmaster, as an Army reservist, was called into action. Soon after, an air-raid shelter was built in the playground and gas masks were placed under desks, where the pupils would store their bags. Village residents formed a Home Guard and Civil Defence Post and air-raid drills became regular free 'entertainment' in the evenings. Stirrup pumps were issued to put out fires and proved very useful for watering gardens during the summer. The name on the outside of the school was covered during the war so that any German parachutists landing in Greenisland would be disorientated, not knowing where they were.

In Easter 1941, when a German plane was reported to have flown up the Lough towards Belfast, the anti-aircraft battery on Neill's Lane opened fire. It was the only occasion during the war that necessitated the air-raid shelters in Greenisland. The guns did not bring down any aircraft and only managed to crack some windows in the village. However, it was soon realised that a full-scale attack had been waged on the city of Belfast (today known as the Belfast Blitz, the greatest loss of life outside London during the Blitz) and the village's Air Raid Precautions volunteers disappeared into Belfast for several days to help with the recovery.