Sion Mills
Encyclopedia
Sion Mills is a village
in County Tyrone
, Northern Ireland
on the River Mourne
. In the 2001 Census
it had a population of 2,050 people. It lies within the Strabane District Council
area. It is a pleasant tree-lined industrial village and designated conservation area, particularly rich in architectural heritage.
, destroyed by a fire in 1926. More modest half timbered buildings include the gatehouse, the recreation hall and Old St. Saviour's church. Unsworth based his design for the polychrome Anglican church, the Church of the Good Shepherd, (1909) on a church in Pistoia
in Tuscany
. By contrast the modern Catholic church of St Teresa (1963 by Patrick Haughey) is admirable for its severely plain lines - a long rectangle with a striking representation of the Last Supper on the slate facade. Oisín Kelly
was the artist.
tradition and was the venue for a celebrated moment in cricket history when the Irish team
beat a West Indian side in July 1969. Sion Mills Cricket Club
plays in the North West Senior League
.
of Lanyon, Lynn and Lanyon
, Belfast
. This is a very large and handsome five storey mill built in Italianate style
of grey ashlar
stone quarried locally, with yellow brick extensions added in 1884 to 1900. There had been a series of corn mills on the site, (the earliest recorded in 1640), with the latest one rebuilt in 1828 which the three Herdman brothers from Belfast, and their partners, the Mulhollands, purchased from the Marquis of Abercorn, and this became part of the 1835 tow mill next to the river, now the three storey "Old Mill". The immense water-power of the River Mourne provided 1000 water horsepower. The water-power and its history are still very much a feature of the Mill with the modern turbines, the newly developed river walks and picnic areas overlooking the huge weir and the 35 ft wide mill lade which flows on to run between the two main buildings of the Mill. There is also a complicated system of sluices and a suspension bridge ("the swinging bridge").
", when she lived in Camus-juxta-Mourne Rectory overlooking the weir on the River Mourne at Sion Mills, in a Georgian
house later owned by the Herdman family. The River Mourne is "the river running by" and "the purple headed mountain" is Meenashesk, a hill to the east of the village.
For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service
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...
in County Tyrone
County Tyrone
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
, 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...
on the River Mourne
River Mourne
The River Mourne is a river in County Tyrone , Northern Ireland, and is a tributary of the River Foyle. At Strabane it joins with the River Finn to form the River Foyle. Fishing is largely for salmon, grilse and sea trout....
. 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 2,050 people. It lies within the Strabane District Council
Strabane District Council
Strabane District Council is a Local Council in County Tyrone in Northern Ireland. The headquarters of the Council is in the town of Strabane. Apart from Strabane the other smaller towns in the area include Plumbridge, Newtownstewart, Donemana, Sion Mills and Castlederg...
area. It is a pleasant tree-lined industrial village and designated conservation area, particularly rich in architectural heritage.
History
Sion Mills was laid out as a model linen village by the Herdman brothers, James, John and George. In 1835 they converted an old flour mill on the River Mourne into a flax spinning mill, and erected a bigger mill behind it in the 1850s. Nearly everything in Sion Mills was designed by James Herdman's son in law, the English architect W. F. Unsworth. Sion House, a half timbered Elizabethan style mansion, was planned by Unsworth at the same time as he was designing the first Shakespeare memorial theatre in Stratford-upon-AvonStratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
, destroyed by a fire in 1926. More modest half timbered buildings include the gatehouse, the recreation hall and Old St. Saviour's church. Unsworth based his design for the polychrome Anglican church, the Church of the Good Shepherd, (1909) on a church in Pistoia
Pistoia
Pistoia is a city and comune in the Tuscany region of Italy, the capital of a province of the same name, located about 30 km west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno.-History:...
in Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
. By contrast the modern Catholic church of St Teresa (1963 by Patrick Haughey) is admirable for its severely plain lines - a long rectangle with a striking representation of the Last Supper on the slate facade. Oisín Kelly
Oisín Kelly
Oisín Kelly was an Irish sculptor.Kelly was born as Austin Kelly in Dublin, the son of William Kelly, principal of James's Street National School, and his wife Elizabeth . Until he became an artist in residence at the Kilkenny Design Centre in 1966, he worked as a school teacher...
was the artist.
Sport
Sion Mills has a strong cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
tradition and was the venue for a celebrated moment in cricket history when the Irish team
Irish cricket team
The Ireland cricket team is the cricket team representing all of Ireland. Because of political difficulties, the Irish Cricket Union was not elected to the International Cricket Council until 1993, and qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 2007. The Irish Cricket Union is the...
beat a West Indian side in July 1969. Sion Mills Cricket Club
Sion Mills Cricket Club
Sion Mills Cricket Club is a cricket club in Sion Mills, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, playing in North West Senior League 2.The club was founded in 1864, under the patronage of the Herdman family, the local mill owners. It has won the North West Senior League on 28 occasions and the Cup 29 times...
plays in the North West Senior League
North West Senior League
The North West Senior League is the provincial cricket league within the North West Cricket Union jurisdiction in Ireland, which covers counties Londonderry, Fermanagh, and part of Tyrone in Northern Ireland and County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland. The league has eighteen members and is...
.
Transport
- Sion Mills railway station opened on 9 May 1852 and finally closed on 15 February 1965.
Industry
The River Mourne was the reason that Herdman's Mill was built in Sion Mills, County Tyrone. It was founded in 1835 and is a large complex of now listed buildings, the most prominent of which was built in 1853 by William Henry LynnWilliam Henry Lynn
William Henry Lynn was an Irish-born architect with a practice in Belfast and the north of England. He is noted for his Ruskinian Venetian Gothic public buildings, which include Chester Town Hall and Barrow-in-Furness Town Hall .In 1846 Lynn was articled to Sir Charles Lanyon in Belfast; under...
of Lanyon, Lynn and Lanyon
Lanyon, Lynn and Lanyon
Lanyon, Lynn & Lanyon, Civil Engineers and Architects was a 19th-century firm working mainly in Dublin and Belfast, and the leading architectural firm in Belfast during the 1860s. Its partners were Charles Lanyon, William Henry Lynn, and Charles' son John Lanyon.Charles Lanyon was the head of the...
, Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
. This is a very large and handsome five storey mill built in Italianate style
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
of grey ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
stone quarried locally, with yellow brick extensions added in 1884 to 1900. There had been a series of corn mills on the site, (the earliest recorded in 1640), with the latest one rebuilt in 1828 which the three Herdman brothers from Belfast, and their partners, the Mulhollands, purchased from the Marquis of Abercorn, and this became part of the 1835 tow mill next to the river, now the three storey "Old Mill". The immense water-power of the River Mourne provided 1000 water horsepower. The water-power and its history are still very much a feature of the Mill with the modern turbines, the newly developed river walks and picnic areas overlooking the huge weir and the 35 ft wide mill lade which flows on to run between the two main buildings of the Mill. There is also a complicated system of sluices and a suspension bridge ("the swinging bridge").
Culture
Mrs. Cecil Frances Alexander wrote her famous hymn, "All Things Bright and BeautifulAll Things Bright and Beautiful
All Things Bright and Beautiful is an Anglican hymn, also popular with other Christian denominations.The piece can be sung to several melodies, in particular the 17th-century English melody "Royal Oak", adapted by Martin Shaw, and "Bright and Beautiful" by William Henry Monk...
", when she lived in Camus-juxta-Mourne Rectory overlooking the weir on the River Mourne at Sion Mills, in a Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian 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...
house later owned by the Herdman family. The River Mourne is "the river running by" and "the purple headed mountain" is Meenashesk, a hill to the east of the village.
Demography
Sion Mills is classified as a village by the NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (i.e. with population between 1,000 and 2,250 people). On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 2,050 people living in Sion Mills. Of these:- 25.7% were aged under 16 years and 16.3% were aged 60 and over
- 49.4% of the population were male and 50.6% were female
- 61.6% 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 37.8% 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 - 4.8% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed
For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service
See also
- List of villages in Northern Ireland
- List of towns in Northern Ireland