Portadown, United Kingdom

In 1610, as part of the Plantation, the lands of Portadown were granted to William Powell. In 1611, he sold his grant of land to Reverend Richard Rolleston, who in turn sold it in two portions to Richard Cope and Michael Obins. Obins built a large Elizabethan-style mansion for himself and his family, and a number of houses nearby for English tenants. This mansion was in the area of the present-day Woodside estate.

The present-day People's Park was part of its grounds. The park is now bounded on either side by Obins Street and Castle Street, both of which are references to "Obins' Castle". In 1631, Obins was granted a licence for a "fair and market". He built the first bridge across the River Bann shortly thereafter.

During the Irish Rebellion of 1641, Obins Castle was captured by a force of dispossessed Irish led by the McCanns, Magennises and O'Neills. In November 1641, Irish rebels—likely under the command of Toole McCann—killed about 100 captured British settlers by forcing them off the Bann bridge and shooting those who swam ashore.

This was one of the worst atrocities of the rebellion. It fuelled revenge killings by the English during the conflict that followed and was used to justify the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. The Irish Confederate troops abandoned Obins Castle during the Cromwellian conquest. Hamlet Obins (who had survived its capture) repossessed it in 1652. It was later passed to his son, Anthony Obins.

In 1741, Anthony Obins was involved with development of the Newry Canal. He was succeeded by Michael Obins in 1750. The latter set up a linen market in Portadown in 1762, which laid the foundations of Portadown's major industry.

Michael Obins died in 1798 and left a son, Michael Eyre Obins, to succeed him. In 1814, Eyre Obins took holy orders; he sold the estate to the Sparrow family of Tandragee.

George Montagu, 6th Duke of Manchester (known as Viscount Mandeville) married Millicent Sparrow in 1822 and came into possession of the estate. This family's legacy in the town includes such street names as Montagu Street, Millicent Crescent and Mandeville Street, and buildings such as the Fergus Hall (formerly the Duke's School and Church Street PS), and the Carleton Home. (Formerly the Duke's townhouse, this was later used as a maternity hospital/nurses accommodation. It has since been adapted as private apartments).

The Blacker family, descended from Danes who had invaded and settled in Ireland in the 9th century, founded an estate at Carrick, on the Portadown–Gilford road. The land had been bought by Colonel Valentine Blacker from Sir Anthony Cope of Loughgall. It became known as Carrickblacker, and is now the site of Portadown Golf Club. One of the notables in the Blacker family, Colonel William Blacker, High Sheriff of Armagh, took part in the "Battle of the Diamond" and was a founding member of the Orange Order. In August 1796, Portadown District LOL No. 1 was formed, becoming the first Orange District.

This, and subsequent events such as the founding of a 'provisional' Grand Lodge in the town after the 'voluntary' dissolution of the Order in 1825, led to the town being known as 'The Orange Citadel'. It was a center of sectarian strife for two centuries. Many of the Blacker family were soldiers or churchmen. The family estate was purchased in 1937 by Portadown Golf Club. In 1988 the club demolished Carrickblacker House to make way for a new clubhouse.

A large prisoner-of-war (POW) camp was built at Portadown during World War II. It was at the site of a former sports facility on what was then the western edge of town. This area is now covered by housing from Fitzroy Street and the Brownstown Estates. The camp housed (mostly) German POWs. For a time these POWs were guarded by Welsh servicemen (known as "Bluecaps") who had been transferred from assignments with troops in Germany. They were billeted at St Patrick's Hall in Thomas Street.

The local newspaper carried a story of another POW camp, adjacent to Killicomaine Castle (also known as Irwin's Castle), in what was then known as "Cullen's Lane" but is now called "Princess Way". That area was later part of the Killicomaine estate, housing built in 1954 and largely contemporary with other estates built by the then Portadown Borough Council and the former Northern Ireland Housing Trust (now called the Northern Ireland Housing Executive).

A third camp was built on the Carrickblacker estate towards the end of World War II, possibly as an overflow for the nearby Elmfield Camp in Gilford. It was used as accommodation for Allied troops and no Axis POWs were ever imprisoned there.

In 2005, a public air-raid shelter was uncovered during excavation works near the riverbank just outside the town centre. One of ten built by the council during World War II, it is one of only two now remaining. The other is at the new roundabout on the Gilford Road. These are rare examples of public air raid shelters in Northern Ireland.