Feeny
Encyclopedia
Feeny is a village
and townland
in County Londonderry
, Northern Ireland
. It is between Dungiven
and Claudy
. In the 2001 Census
it had a population of 542. Feeny lies just inside the boundary of the Sperrins
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
club. However, it only has a small number of shops. There are three pubs in the village.
A community regeneration project has been proposed for the village, funded by the International Fund for Ireland
. The project, to be undertaken by Feeny Community Association, involves redeveloping a derelict site in the village centre to commercial premises, three apartments and a community office. This will be alongside an environmental improvement scheme in Main Street, which would create a stronger commercial centre, more jobs, and improve the appearance of the village.
Shane Crossagh. This is where Sean Crossan held up some British Redcoats by placing wooden cut-out muskets into some bushes.
During the Troubles
, off-duty Ulster Defence Regiment
soldier James Hood was killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army
(IRA) at his house near Feeny on 4 January 1973.
(DUP) member, Gregory Campbell
.
(20 km to the north) and Derry
(23 km to the northwest), but has limited public transport connections.
are the most popular sports in the area, with St Mary's GAC Banagher
(CLG Naomh Mhuire Beannchar) being the local club. Fr McNally Park is the team's grounds.
For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service
The century of political and religious turmoil in modern day Northern Ireland has seen the village of Feeny move from a mixed village to being almost exclusively Nationalist.
In the 1911 Census the village recorded 149 inhabitants of whom 64 were from a Protestant background. The village had a demographic that was 57.1% Roman Catholic and 42.9% Protestant. Over the course of the century while the overall population of the village quadrupled in size the minority Protestant population had shrunk to just 20 inhabitants in the 2001 Census. This 39% fall in the Protestant community over the century is the third largest deterioration of a community from either side of Ulster's political divide in any village or district of over one hundred inhabitants behind the sharp declines of the Protestant communities of Derry City and Dungiven Village and marginally higher than the sharpest decline of a Roman Catholic community, experienced in Castlereagh.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and townland
Townland
A townland or bally is a small geographical division of land used in Ireland. The townland system is of Gaelic origin—most townlands are believed to pre-date the Norman invasion and most have names derived from the Irish language...
in County Londonderry
County Londonderry
The place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. It is between Dungiven
Dungiven
Dungiven is a small town and townland in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is on the main A6 Belfast to Derry road. It lies where the rivers Roe, Owenreagh and Owenbeg meet at the foot of the Benbradagh. Nearby is the Glenshane Pass, where the road rises to over...
and Claudy
Claudy
Claudy is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It lies southeast of Derry, where the River Glenrandal joins the River Faughan. Claudy is located in the Faughan Valley....
. In the 2001 Census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
it had a population of 542. Feeny lies just inside the boundary of the Sperrins
Sperrins
The Sperrins or Sperrin Mountains are a range of mountains in Northern Ireland and one of the largest upland areas in Ireland. The range stretches the counties of Tyrone and Londonderry from south of Strabane eastwards to Maghera and north towards Limavady...
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Features
Feeny has a health centre, community centre and Gaelic Athletic AssociationGaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...
club. However, it only has a small number of shops. There are three pubs in the village.
A community regeneration project has been proposed for the village, funded by the International Fund for Ireland
International Fund for Ireland
The International Fund for Ireland is an independent international organisation established in 1986 by the British and Irish governments with the objectives of promoting "economic and social advance and to encourage contact, dialogue and reconciliation between nationalists and unionists throughout...
. The project, to be undertaken by Feeny Community Association, involves redeveloping a derelict site in the village centre to commercial premises, three apartments and a community office. This will be alongside an environmental improvement scheme in Main Street, which would create a stronger commercial centre, more jobs, and improve the appearance of the village.
History
Near the village is the General’s Bridge, the site of the famous ambush by highwaymanHighwayman
A highwayman was a thief and brigand who preyed on travellers. This type of outlaw, usually, travelled and robbed by horse, as compared to a footpad who traveled and robbed on foot. Mounted robbers were widely considered to be socially superior to footpads...
Shane Crossagh. This is where Sean Crossan held up some British Redcoats by placing wooden cut-out muskets into some bushes.
During the Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
, off-duty Ulster Defence Regiment
Ulster Defence Regiment
The Ulster Defence Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army which became operational in 1970, formed on similar lines to other British reserve forces but with the operational role of defence of life or property in Northern Ireland against armed attack or sabotage...
soldier James Hood was killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
(IRA) at his house near Feeny on 4 January 1973.
Politics
The village lies within the East Derry constituency and is represented by Democratic Unionist PartyDemocratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
(DUP) member, Gregory Campbell
Gregory Campbell (politician)
Gregory Lloyd Campbell is a Northern Irish unionist politician, and the Democratic Unionist Party Member of Parliament of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, representing the East Londonderry constituency of Northern Ireland....
.
Places of interest
- On the outskirts of the village, towards Dungiven, lies four-storey Drumcovitt House which was built over 300 years ago by the Worshipful Company of FishmongersWorshipful Company of FishmongersThe Worshipful Company of Fishmongers is one of the 108 Livery Companies of the City of London, being a guild of the sellers of fish and seafood in the City...
and is a visible reminder of the Plantation of UlsterPlantation of UlsterThe Plantation of Ulster was the organised colonisation of Ulster—a province of Ireland—by people from Great Britain. Private plantation by wealthy landowners began in 1606, while official plantation controlled by King James I of England and VI of Scotland began in 1609...
period. In 1796 a round ended GeorgianGeorgian architectureGeorgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
front was added to the house. It is now tourist accommodation. - Banagher Glen National Nature Reserve is close to the village.
- AughlishAughlishAughlish is the site of at least six stone circles and two stone rows, in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, 3.6km from Feeny.-Features:...
stone circles and alignments are 3.6 km from Feeny.
Transport
Feeny has good road links to LimavadyLimavady
Limavady is a market town in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, with Binevenagh as a backdrop. It lies east of Derry and south west of Coleraine. It had a population of 12,135 people in the 2001 Census, an increase of some 17% compared to 1991...
(20 km to the north) and Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
(23 km to the northwest), but has limited public transport connections.
Sport
Gaelic gamesGaelic games
Gaelic games are sports played in Ireland under the auspices of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The two main games are Gaelic football and hurling...
are the most popular sports in the area, with St Mary's GAC Banagher
Banagher GAC
St Mary's Banagher GAC is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in the Feeny / Park area of County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The club is a member of the Derry GAA. Banagher is a dual club and currently cater for Gaelic football, Hurling and Camogie...
(CLG Naomh Mhuire Beannchar) being the local club. Fr McNally Park is the team's grounds.
Demography
Feeny is classified as a small village or hamlet by the NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (i.e., with population between 500 and 1,000). On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 542 people living in Feeny. Of these:- 29.3% were aged under 16 years and 6.6% were aged 60 and over
- 47.6% of the population were male and 52.4% were female
- 95.8% were from a CatholicCatholicThe word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
background and 3.7% were from a ProtestantProtestantismProtestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
background - 7.8% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed
For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service
The century of political and religious turmoil in modern day Northern Ireland has seen the village of Feeny move from a mixed village to being almost exclusively Nationalist.
In the 1911 Census the village recorded 149 inhabitants of whom 64 were from a Protestant background. The village had a demographic that was 57.1% Roman Catholic and 42.9% Protestant. Over the course of the century while the overall population of the village quadrupled in size the minority Protestant population had shrunk to just 20 inhabitants in the 2001 Census. This 39% fall in the Protestant community over the century is the third largest deterioration of a community from either side of Ulster's political divide in any village or district of over one hundred inhabitants behind the sharp declines of the Protestant communities of Derry City and Dungiven Village and marginally higher than the sharpest decline of a Roman Catholic community, experienced in Castlereagh.