Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 1.djvu/239

Rh BELFAST. BELFAST. 1) -n, and on the AY. and N.W. by the bars, of Upper and LI er Massurccne, Upper Antrim, and Upper G . Tl Lower Barony contains the pars, of Ballylinny, Biymore, Ballyrobert Grange, Ballywaltcr Granyv, C; iinoncy, Glyim, luvor, Island Magee, Kilroot, Molusk G: ige, Kaloo, Templecorran, with parts of the pars, of Hiymartin, Belfast, or Shankill, and Templcpatrick. Tli bar. includes an area of about 56,093 acres. The U or Barony contains tho pars, of Umgall Grango, wit h pai of those of Ballvmartin, Derryaghy, Drumlx-!/, Liibcg, Shankill, or Belfast, and Templcpatrick, ami h:i an area of about 35,898 acres. I^LFAST, a seaport, post, and market town ; a ii-ipal and parliamentary borough, and head of a -law Union, in tho par. of Belfast or Shankill, in tho Upper and Lower Belfast, in the co. of Antrim, suburb of Ballymacarrett, in the par. of the same -. in the co. of Down, prov. of Ulster, Ireland, 14 tiles to tho S.E. of Antrim, or 22 miles by ruilv,i v. au 101 miles to the N. of Dublin, or 112 miles by rail- t is situated at the south extremity of Belfast Lcjh, at the mouth of the river Lagan, in 54 36' N. > 5o' V. long. Belfast is the principal commer- u in Ireland, tho capital of the prov. of Ulster,
 * i<>w tho county town of Antrim, in place of Carrick-

i<. which formerly held that rank. As early as the atury a fortified station appears to have existed nej the mouth of the river Lagan, and before the com- 11 nt of the 14th century a townmust have grown ! HTO, fur in 1316 the town and castle were attacked 'I by the English for about two centuries. In L'ii of Henry VIII. the town and castle were to Hugh Mac Nial Oge on certain conditions, h being violated >y the O'Nials, in the reign of !., they reverted' to tho crown. In 160-4 they v.-..j conferred on Sir Arthur Chichester, then lord- .; v. From this period the town began to rise rapidly importance, and by the year 1611 had acquired l wealth to obtain from James I. a charter of Duration, erecting it into a municipal and parlia- !:uy borough, having the privilege of sending two 1 ers to the Irish parliament; 26 years later, on the iMuio the principal commercial entrepflt of the li-ih Plantation in Ulster, and the seat of the cu 'm-house. Its progress and improvement were ,-nded by the Civil War, in which the inhabitants to first the side of the parliament, and subsequently th; of the king. They were mostly Presbyterians, r-xpression of their feeling on the execution of >lrew from Milton a severe reply. Belfast iily espoused the cause of the Prince of Orange, and -.! him king. He spent some days here before h to the Boyue, and was so well satisfied with i-.-ption that he granted 1,200 per annum from i. tiers of the State to the Presbyterian ministers of TTler. This was the origin of tho larger endowment d (lie licr/iii M Jloiium. Belfast stands on an extensive I tract on the western bank of the river Lagan, iv it falls into Belfast Lough. It is not more than .1 .v feet above high-water mark, and was once a mere -:i, frequently covered by the river. The situation is considered healthy, and the surrounding scenery is itiful and diversified. The valley of the Lagan is Jed to the westward by a fine range of hills, some ofhhich rise to the height of 1,000 feet. Divis, a mJutain on tho north-west, is above 1,500 feet in hclht. The neighbourhood of the town, both along ththores of the lough, and the banks of the rivi r, as as up tho sides of the hills, is adorned with nume- iv. villas and residences, gardens, and pretty villages. Tl, general aspect of tho town bespeaks activity and 'ti'ity, and the number of fine mansions and villas " vicinity attest the wealth and taste of the inha- its, though, from its low situation, it cannot be " idered as striking. There are many spacious and .ue-^ streets, squares, and terraces, with numerous pi ic buildings, testifying, not only tho mercantile importance of the place, but its connections with science, literature, art, and education. It is lighted with gas, and well supplied with water. The Lagan is crossed by three bridges, one called the Queen's bridge, a short distance above the mouth of tho river, connecting the town with the suburb of Ballymacarrett. It is a hand- some structure of five arches, and was erected in 1841 on the site of a bridge of 21 arches, built in 1686, which had become unsafe, and was taken down. The breadth oi' the river is here about 2.30 yards, and the new bridge cost 27,000. Higher up, and connecting the south quarter of the town with the neighbouring county, is New bridge, which was built in 1831. Outside the town, in the suburb of Malone, the river is crossed by a third bridge. The mercantile quarter of the town Hes on and near the quays ; the manufacturing quarter is that on the north and west sides of the town; and the principal commercial establishments are in High-street, Bridge-street, Donegal-place, and their vicinity. The quays extend about a mile below Queen's bridge, and consist of Custom-house quay, Chichesler quay, Lime- kiln dock, Donegal quay, Kitchie's dock, the Ballast Corporation dock, tho Clarendon dock, and Dunbar's dock. The principal street is High-street, loading to High-street dock. It is the oldest and one of the most spacious streets in tho town. Castle-place is its conti- nuation. Donegal-place, a range of handsome buildings, leads from High-street to Donegal-square, the site of the "White Linen Hall, a spacious building erected in 1785. Half a mile westward is College-square. The Commercial-buildings, a spacious block of houses at the south end of Donegal-street, have a granite front with eight Ionic columns, and comprise a hotel, a news-room, an assembly-room, and various offices. The news-room is also used as an exchange. The buildings were erected in 1822, at a cost of above 20,000. Opposite this pile is the Old Exchange, lately reconstructed, and converted into a banking-house. The custom-house, a handsome structure of stone, recently erected, in the Italian style, stands on Donegal quay, along which is a spacious espla- nade nearly a quarter of a mile in length, where the steam navy and "West India traders of the port have their station. From Donegal and College squares, the leading roads southward conduct to the new town of Malone, which stands on rising ground, between the Old Dublin-road and the river. The prominent feature in this district is the new Queen's College, a beautiful and picturesque pile of brick and stone, in the Tudor collegiate style, which occupies a commanding site, in the midst of villas and park scenery, adjoining the Botanic Gardens. The barracks, accommodating a regi- ment of infantry and a troop of horse, are on the high grounds north of the town. Westward of the barracks are the gaol and the court-house, both of recent erection ; the former a handsome pile, covering five acres, and arranged on tho separate principle ; tho latter a fine edifice, with a Corinthian portico. The theatre is in Arthur-street ; the house of correction in Howard-street ; the natural history museum and the Royal Academical Institution are in Collegc-square. In tho same neigh- bourhood is the Union poorhouso. The terminus of the Ulster railway is in the New Dublin- road, near College- square ; that of the Belfast and Ballj-mena, in York-street ; and that of the Belfast and County Down, at Ballyma- carrett. There is a branch line to Carrickfergus, and also a short line to Holywood. At Portadown tho Ulster rail- way crosses the Dublin and Belfast Junction line. The Lagan navigation connects Belfast with Lough Xeagli and tho Ulster canal and Newry canal, by a line of water- carriage of 28J miles. The staple business of Belfast is the linen and cotton manufactures, of which it is the prin- cipal seat in Ireland, tho former introduced in 1808, and the latter in 1777. To form a just estimate of the im- portance of these manufactures, it should be remembered that only a century ago, in 1760, the population of Belfast was under 9,000, and that there are now above 18,000 persons engaged in spinning linen yurn alone, which is carried on in about 30 steam-mills. All varieties of linen, damasks, sheetings, diapers, &c., are made here, and ara
 * roycd by Edward Bruce. The place was not
 * up of the port monopolies of Carrickfergus,