Desertmartin (;Toner, Gregory: ''Place-Names of Northern Ireland'', page 85. Queen's University of Belfast, 1996, )Place Names NI /ref>Flanagan, Deirdre & Laurence: ''Irish Place Names'', page 202. Gill & Macmillan Ltd., 2002. is a small
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...
in
County Londonderry
County Londonderry ( Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry ( ga, Contae Dhoire), is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty two counties of Ireland and one of the nine counties of Ulster. B ...
,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. It is four miles from
Magherafelt
Magherafelt (, mˠaxəɾʲəˈfʲiːlt̪ˠə is a small town and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,805 at the 2011 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of the county and is the social, econo ...
, at the foot of
Slieve Gallion
Slieve Gallion () is a mountain in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is the easternmost of the Sperrin Mountains. It reaches a height of and dominates the western shore of Lough Neagh. Its prominent northeastern summit has a transmit ...
Mid-Ulster District
, settlement_type = District
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_type1 = Constituent country
, subdivision_type2 =
, subdivision_type3 =
, subdivisi ...
, and the historic
barony Barony may refer to:
* Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron
* Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron
* Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...
of
Loughinsholin
Loughinsholin () is a barony in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Its southeast borders the northwest shore of Lough Neagh, and itself is bordered by seven other baronies: Dungannon Upper to the south; Strabane Upper to the west; Keenaght ...
. Neighbouring settlements include
Draperstown
Draperstown ()Toner, Gregory. ''Place-Names of Northern Ireland'', p. 85. Queen's University of Belfast, 1996; is a village in the Sperrin Mountains in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is situated in the civil parish of Ballinascreen and ...
,
Magherafelt
Magherafelt (, mˠaxəɾʲəˈfʲiːlt̪ˠə is a small town and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,805 at the 2011 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of the county and is the social, econo ...
,
Moneymore
Moneymore () is a village and townland in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 1,897 in the 2011 Census. It is situated within Mid-Ulster District. It is an example of a plantation village in Mid-Ulster built by the Drap ...
, and
Tobermore
Tobermore (, named after the townland of Tobermore) is a small village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It lies south-south-west of Maghera and north-west of Magherafelt. Tobermore lies within the civil parish of Kilcronaghan and is ...
.
History
The monastic hermitage of Desertmartin was originally dedicated to Saint
Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours ( la, Sanctus Martinus Turonensis; 316/336 – 8 November 397), also known as Martin the Merciful, was the third bishop of Tours. He has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints in France, heralded as the ...
. The remains of the ancient parish church are in the townland of Knocknagin at the east side of the village.
When
County Coleraine
County Coleraine, called the County of Colerain in the earliest documents,Hill, George. ''The Fall of Irish Chiefs and Clans; The Conquest of Ireland''. Irish Roots Cafe, 2004. p.97 was one of the counties of Ireland from 1585 to 1613. It was ...
was created in 1585, its administration was meant to be carried out in the town of
Coleraine
Coleraine ( ; from ga, Cúil Rathain , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern I ...
. However, the jail and courthouse were built in Desertmartin.BBC Local History /ref>
On 19 May 1922, during the
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...
, a mob of unionists and Ulster Special Constables attacked and burned many Catholic homes and businesses in Desertmartin, in revenge for the burning of a unionist-owned mill. Special Constables took four Catholic men from their homes outside the village and summarily executed them by the roadside.
Religious buildings
*St Patrick's, townland of Keenaght (
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
) (Old Chapel).
*St Patrick's, townland of Keenaght (
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
) (New Chapel).
*St. Mary's, townland of Annagh and Moneysterlin (
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
) Church and adjacent Parochial House are landmark buildings. It is commonly referred to as Coolcalm after the former townland of same name, which is now part of Annagh and Moneysterlin.
*
Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged in North America from the 19th-century Wesleyan-Holiness movement within Methodism. It is headquartered in Lenexa within Johnson County, Kansas. With its members co ...
(a branch of the denomination of the same name based on
Wesleyan
Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan– Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles W ...
tradition).
*St. Comgall's Church (
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...
) is a visually and historically significant building and a local landmark. It occupies the site of an older
Medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
church and is a
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.
Schools
*St. Columb's Primary School (
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
)
*Desertmartin Primary School
*Knocknagin Primary School (
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
)
Transport
Desertmartin railway station
Desertmartin railway station was on the Draperstown Railway which ran from Magherafelt to Draperstown in Northern Ireland.
History
The station was opened by the Draperstown Railway
The Draperstown Railway was an Irish gauge () in County Lo ...
between
Magherafelt
Magherafelt (, mˠaxəɾʲəˈfʲiːlt̪ˠə is a small town and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,805 at the 2011 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of the county and is the social, econo ...
and
Draperstown
Draperstown ()Toner, Gregory. ''Place-Names of Northern Ireland'', p. 85. Queen's University of Belfast, 1996; is a village in the Sperrin Mountains in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is situated in the civil parish of Ballinascreen and ...
opened on 20 July 1883, shut for passengers on 1 October 1930, and shut altogether on 3 July 1950.
People
Tom Paulin
Thomas Neilson Paulin (born 25 January 1949 in Leeds, England) is a Northern Irish poet and critic of film, music and literature. He lives in England, where he was the G. M. Young Lecturer in English Literature at Hertford College, Oxford.
Earl ...
(b. 1949) is a major Northern Irish
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...
, essayist, editor and lecturer, who has written a poem entitled ''Desertmartin''.