Portavogie
Encyclopedia
Portavogie is a village
, townland
and fishing
port in County Down
, Northern Ireland
. It had a population of 1,594 people in the 2001 Census
. It lies within the Borough of Ards and is the easternmost settlement
in Ireland
.
The town has a modern harbour, housing a large fishing fleet catching mainly prawns and herrings. Most evenings there are fish auctions on the quays. Three murals on the exterior of the local school celebrate the history of the fishing industry in the town.
(Talbot's Town) and in the main the inhabitants were families of fishermen who had travelled from across the Irish Sea
from the Solway Coast. In those days the Ardes was an area of marsh land and bog and was in a world of its own to the rest of Ireland
. Public records from 1620 name the area as Portabogagh from the Gaelic
Port a' Bhogaigh. As with all names, pronunciation leads to different spelling and in time this became Portavogie, this spelling first recorded in 1810.
With no strategic benefit in developing Portavogie the Anglo-Norman
s ignored the immediate area and concentrated on developing the castles at Quintin
, Ardkeen
, Portaferry
and Ballygalget. The entrance to Strangford Lough
became a strategic defence area and was rich in seafish providing a ready source of food.
Portavogie was protected from the east by the Irish Sea
and to the west by the “Bogs”, an area still known as that today. The route north to Newtownards
was low lying and subject to regular flooding at spring tide. At one time there were 82 windmills the length of the Ards Peninsula
; this must have looked as the Netherlands does today and probably gave rise to the acronym “Little Holland”. The Savage family had controlled the Ards from around 1200 but did little to improve the area, instead concentrating on securing their ownership and defences.
Following a series of failed military expeditions aimed at dislodging the Scots from Ulster
, Queen Elizabeth I agreed to support an English colonial settlement in the region. In 1571 Sir Thomas Smith, the Queen's Principal Secretary of State, was given a royal grant in Clandeboye and the Ards Peninsula. Smith envisaged a settlement led by the younger sons of Englishmen who would develop the urban and commercial infrastructure of the Ards and exploit its natural resources of fish and timber. The indigenous Irish were to be employed as labourers in the colony. The scheme was financed partly through private investment and partly through state sponsorship, largely in the form of military support. Smith's natural son, Thomas, was given the task of implementing his father's plans and he travelled to the Ards Peninsula in August 1572. Smith encountered considerable local opposition, particularly from Sir Brian MacPhelim O'Neill, the Gaelic lord of Clandeboye
, who was supported by other lords in Ulster, notably Turlough Luineach O'Neill
. In October 1573, Smith was killed by a supporter of Sir Brian having failed to make any progress with his father's colonial scheme.
Plans to establish an English colony in Ulster were not, however, abandoned following Smith's murder. In 1573, Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex
received a grant of land in northeastern Ireland from Queen Elizabeth. Like Smith, Essex agreed to invest his own money in his colonial project but his ambitions were wider than those of Smith as he envisaged taking control of an extensive territory from Belfast to Coleraine and establishing himself as Captain General of Ulster. Essex recruited 400 adventurers for his colony but only a small number of them travelled to Ireland and Essex spent most of his time in the province engaged in military encounters with Gaelic lords opposed to his plans. Frustrated by his lack of progress, Essex in 1574 seized Sir Brian MacPhelim O'Neill, his wife and brother, and arranged for their execution in Dublin Castle. The following year, aware of the Queen's increasing impatience with his failure, Essex authorised a notorious raid on the Scottish settlement on Rathlin Island
by John Norreys
and Francis Drake
. Shortly afterwards, the Queen relieved Essex of his command in Ulster.
Despite the failed colonial projects and the massacre on Rathlin, Scottish migration to northeastern Ireland continued throughout the late 16th century and intensified in the early 17th century when Sir Hugh Montgomery and James Hamilton
acquired property in the Ards Peninsula which they developed as a private plantation.
The Church of Ireland
was the Established church at this time (disestablished in 1871) and the area around Portavogie was known as the Parish of Ballyhalbert or St. Andrews Parish. The other townlands part of the Parish were: Ballyfrench, Ballyhalbert
, Roddens, Echlinville, Ballyhemlin, Ballygraffin and Ballyeasborough - the site of St. Andrews Parish Church. Portavogie was in the main a Presbyterian
village. Many of the fishermen who settled here were “Covenanters” who had come from Scotland to escape the then persecution.
In 1735 Charles Echlin bought Rhuban House from the Reverend Hugh Maxwell and changed the name of the immediate area to Echlinville. The Echlins were Anglo-Normans and at this time also had lands in the Kingdom of Fife, Scotland, an area to the north of Edinburgh
. The Echlins had been gifted “Savage” land by the crown as a reward for services rendered and they set about the task of draining the “Bogs” of the Ardes. A contribution that can be seen today in the quality of the fertile arable land of the “Bogs”. The area is once again known as Rubane.
The past 50 years has seen enormous changes in the look of the village. The rebuilding of the harbour from a "pretty", safe anchorage to the modern look of today's industrial facility is progress, although one could be forgiven for thinking otherwise.
In 1900 there were 18 family names associated with Portavogie: Adair, Pyper, Warnock, Boyd, Rutherford, Lawson, Ambrose, Thompson, McKee, Clint, Hughes, Cully, Edmund, Palmer, Young, McVea, McClements and Coffey. Many of these family lines have continued to this day and the list of names of Portavogie residents grows ever longer.
In 1985 HRH The Princess Anne, Mrs. Mark Phillips, visited the Village to officially open the new harbour and was received by the local community, she toured the fishing boat "Willing Lad" accompanied by its skipper, James McClements. In 1999 Her Royal Highness (now The Princess Royal) revisited the village and opened the new Community centre on New Harbour Road.
Portavogie had the honour, on 12 July 2008, of holding the annual band parade which was attended by a large number of people.
there were two deaths in and near the village of Portavogie. Both deaths were on separate occasions.
1973
1993
The demographic characteristics of the people living in Portavogie was as follows:
Portavogie Rangers hold an annual football tournament called the George Best Trophy in memory of the former Man Utd and Northern Ireland striker. They also hold a five a side tournament on the eleventh of July every year
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...
, 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...
and fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
port in County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, 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 had a population of 1,594 people 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 lies within the Borough of Ards and is the easternmost settlement
Extreme points of Ireland
This is a list of the extreme points of Ireland – the points that are farthest north, south, east or west. It includes the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.Often the term "Malin to Mizen" is used when encompassing the entire island from north to south...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
.
The town has a modern harbour, housing a large fishing fleet catching mainly prawns and herrings. Most evenings there are fish auctions on the quays. Three murals on the exterior of the local school celebrate the history of the fishing industry in the town.
History
In about 1555 there was a settlement at Stable Hole to the north of where Portavogie now stands, at the bottom of what is now the Warnocks Road. The site was chosen for the shelter provided by the surrounding rocks and the sandy shore on which the inhabitants could beach their boats; they existed on what they could grow and catch. This was the first settled area south of BallyhalbertBallyhalbert
Ballyhalbert is a small village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the east coast of the Ards Peninsula between Ballywalter and Portavogie. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 447 people...
(Talbot's Town) and in the main the inhabitants were families of fishermen who had travelled from across the Irish Sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
from the Solway Coast. In those days the Ardes was an area of marsh land and bog and was in a world of its own to the rest of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Public records from 1620 name the area as Portabogagh from the Gaelic
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
Port a' Bhogaigh. As with all names, pronunciation leads to different spelling and in time this became Portavogie, this spelling first recorded in 1810.
With no strategic benefit in developing Portavogie the Anglo-Norman
Anglo-Norman
The Anglo-Normans were mainly the descendants of the Normans who ruled England following the Norman conquest by William the Conqueror in 1066. A small number of Normans were already settled in England prior to the conquest...
s ignored the immediate area and concentrated on developing the castles at Quintin
Quintin Castle
Quintin Castle is a castle situated in County Down, Northern Ireland, about 4km east of Portaferry. It is one of the very few occupied Anglo-Norman castles in Ireland....
, Ardkeen
Ardkeen
Ardkeen is an eastern suburb of Waterford, Ireland. It contains the Waterford Regional Hospital, and two large shopping centres, with various chain stores and some good restaurants, plus the Uluru Australian theme pub. It is close to some prestigious schools and has good access to the city centre,...
, Portaferry
Portaferry
Portaferry is a small town in County Down, Northern Ireland, at the southern end of the Ards Peninsula, near the Narrows at the entrance to Strangford Lough. It had a population of 2,467 people in the 2001 Census. It has an aquarium and is well-known for the annual Galway Hookers Regatta. It hosts...
and Ballygalget. The entrance to Strangford Lough
Strangford Lough
Strangford Lough, sometimes Strangford Loch, is a large sea loch or inlet in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is separated from the Irish Sea by the Ards Peninsula. The name Strangford is derived ; describing the fast-flowing narrows at its mouth...
became a strategic defence area and was rich in seafish providing a ready source of food.
Portavogie was protected from the east by the Irish Sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
and to the west by the “Bogs”, an area still known as that today. The route north to Newtownards
Newtownards
Newtownards is a large town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies at the most northern tip of Strangford Lough, 10 miles east of Belfast, on the Ards Peninsula. Newtownards is the largest town in the Borough of Ards. According to the 2001 Census, it has a population of 27,821 people in...
was low lying and subject to regular flooding at spring tide. At one time there were 82 windmills the length of the Ards Peninsula
Ards Peninsula
The Ards Peninsula is a peninsula in County Down, Northern Ireland which separates Strangford Lough from the North Channel of the Irish Sea, on Ireland's northeast coast. A number of towns and villages are located on the peninsula, such as the seaside town of Donaghadee, with the surrounding area...
; this must have looked as the Netherlands does today and probably gave rise to the acronym “Little Holland”. The Savage family had controlled the Ards from around 1200 but did little to improve the area, instead concentrating on securing their ownership and defences.
Following a series of failed military expeditions aimed at dislodging the Scots from Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
, Queen Elizabeth I agreed to support an English colonial settlement in the region. In 1571 Sir Thomas Smith, the Queen's Principal Secretary of State, was given a royal grant in Clandeboye and the Ards Peninsula. Smith envisaged a settlement led by the younger sons of Englishmen who would develop the urban and commercial infrastructure of the Ards and exploit its natural resources of fish and timber. The indigenous Irish were to be employed as labourers in the colony. The scheme was financed partly through private investment and partly through state sponsorship, largely in the form of military support. Smith's natural son, Thomas, was given the task of implementing his father's plans and he travelled to the Ards Peninsula in August 1572. Smith encountered considerable local opposition, particularly from Sir Brian MacPhelim O'Neill, the Gaelic lord of Clandeboye
Clandeboye
Clandeboye is in modern times an area of Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. It is named after the Clandeboye family, a branch of the O'Neill dynasty. They settled in the 1330s after the death of the Earl of Ulster in what is now south Antrim and north Down, giving their name to the territory...
, who was supported by other lords in Ulster, notably Turlough Luineach O'Neill
Turlough Luineach O'Neill
Toirdhealbhach Luineach Mac Néill Chonnalaigh Ó Néill , the earl of the Clan-Connell, was inaugurated as the King of Tyrone, upon Shane O’Neill’s death...
. In October 1573, Smith was killed by a supporter of Sir Brian having failed to make any progress with his father's colonial scheme.
Plans to establish an English colony in Ulster were not, however, abandoned following Smith's murder. In 1573, Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex
Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex
Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex, KG , an English nobleman and general. From 1573 until his death he fought in Ireland in connection with the Plantation of Ulster, where he ordered the massacre of Rathlin Island...
received a grant of land in northeastern Ireland from Queen Elizabeth. Like Smith, Essex agreed to invest his own money in his colonial project but his ambitions were wider than those of Smith as he envisaged taking control of an extensive territory from Belfast to Coleraine and establishing himself as Captain General of Ulster. Essex recruited 400 adventurers for his colony but only a small number of them travelled to Ireland and Essex spent most of his time in the province engaged in military encounters with Gaelic lords opposed to his plans. Frustrated by his lack of progress, Essex in 1574 seized Sir Brian MacPhelim O'Neill, his wife and brother, and arranged for their execution in Dublin Castle. The following year, aware of the Queen's increasing impatience with his failure, Essex authorised a notorious raid on the Scottish settlement on Rathlin Island
Rathlin Island
Rathlin Island is an island off the coast of County Antrim, and is the northernmost point of Northern Ireland. Rathlin is the only inhabited offshore island in Northern Ireland, with a rising population of now just over 100 people, and is the most northerly inhabited island off the Irish coast...
by John Norreys
John Norreys
Sir John Norreys , also frequently spelt John Norris, was an English soldier of a Berkshire family of court gentry, the son of Henry Norris, 1st Baron Norreys a lifelong friend of Queen Elizabeth....
and Francis Drake
Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
. Shortly afterwards, the Queen relieved Essex of his command in Ulster.
Despite the failed colonial projects and the massacre on Rathlin, Scottish migration to northeastern Ireland continued throughout the late 16th century and intensified in the early 17th century when Sir Hugh Montgomery and James Hamilton
James Hamilton, 1st Viscount Claneboye
James Hamilton, 1st Viscount Claneboye was a Scot who became owner of large tracts of land in County Down, Ireland, and founded a successful Protestant Scots settlement there several years before the Plantation of Ulster...
acquired property in the Ards Peninsula which they developed as a private plantation.
The Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
was the Established church at this time (disestablished in 1871) and the area around Portavogie was known as the Parish of Ballyhalbert or St. Andrews Parish. The other townlands part of the Parish were: Ballyfrench, Ballyhalbert
Ballyhalbert
Ballyhalbert is a small village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the east coast of the Ards Peninsula between Ballywalter and Portavogie. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 447 people...
, Roddens, Echlinville, Ballyhemlin, Ballygraffin and Ballyeasborough - the site of St. Andrews Parish Church. Portavogie was in the main a Presbyterian
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...
village. Many of the fishermen who settled here were “Covenanters” who had come from Scotland to escape the then persecution.
In 1735 Charles Echlin bought Rhuban House from the Reverend Hugh Maxwell and changed the name of the immediate area to Echlinville. The Echlins were Anglo-Normans and at this time also had lands in the Kingdom of Fife, Scotland, an area to the north of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. The Echlins had been gifted “Savage” land by the crown as a reward for services rendered and they set about the task of draining the “Bogs” of the Ardes. A contribution that can be seen today in the quality of the fertile arable land of the “Bogs”. The area is once again known as Rubane.
The past 50 years has seen enormous changes in the look of the village. The rebuilding of the harbour from a "pretty", safe anchorage to the modern look of today's industrial facility is progress, although one could be forgiven for thinking otherwise.
In 1900 there were 18 family names associated with Portavogie: Adair, Pyper, Warnock, Boyd, Rutherford, Lawson, Ambrose, Thompson, McKee, Clint, Hughes, Cully, Edmund, Palmer, Young, McVea, McClements and Coffey. Many of these family lines have continued to this day and the list of names of Portavogie residents grows ever longer.
In 1985 HRH The Princess Anne, Mrs. Mark Phillips, visited the Village to officially open the new harbour and was received by the local community, she toured the fishing boat "Willing Lad" accompanied by its skipper, James McClements. In 1999 Her Royal Highness (now The Princess Royal) revisited the village and opened the new Community centre on New Harbour Road.
Portavogie had the honour, on 12 July 2008, of holding the annual band parade which was attended by a large number of people.
The Troubles
During the period known as The TroublesThe 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...
there were two deaths in and near the village of Portavogie. Both deaths were on separate occasions.
1973
- 3 April 1973 - David McQueen (28), a Protestant CivilianCivilianA civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
was shot and killed by a non specific LoyalistUlster loyalismUlster loyalism is an ideology that is opposed to a united Ireland. It can mean either support for upholding Northern Ireland's status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom , support for Northern Ireland independence, or support for loyalist paramilitaries...
group at the side of the road, near Portavogie, County Down.
1993
- 5 April 1993 - William Killen (36), an ex-member of the Ulster Defence AssociationUlster Defence AssociationThe Ulster Defence Association is the largest although not the deadliest loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 and undertook a campaign of almost twenty-four years during "The Troubles"...
(UDA), was shot dead in his bed by the Ulster Defence AssociationUlster Defence AssociationThe Ulster Defence Association is the largest although not the deadliest loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 and undertook a campaign of almost twenty-four years during "The Troubles"...
(UDA) while at his home, Westlea Gardens, Portavogie, County Down during an Internal UDA dispute.
2001 Census
The population of Portavogie on Census day (29 April 2001) was 1594 people. Therefore it is classed as a village as it has a population of 1,000 people or more and is less than 2,250 people.The demographic characteristics of the people living in Portavogie was as follows:
- 20.4% were aged under 16 years;
- 18.4% were aged 60 and over;
- the average age was 37.9 years (NI average age 35.8 years);
- 49.9% of the population were male and 50.1% were female;
- 2.4% were from a Catholic Community Background;
- 95.9% were from a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' Community Background;
- 4.4% were born outside Northern Ireland; and
- 0.2% were from an ethnic group other than white.
Portavogie Rangers hold an annual football tournament called the George Best Trophy in memory of the former Man Utd and Northern Ireland striker. They also hold a five a side tournament on the eleventh of July every year