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Lurgan () is a town in
County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of an ...
, Northern Ireland, near the southern shore of Lough Neagh. Lurgan is about south-west of
Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
and is linked to the city by both the
M1 motorway The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass, which ...
and the Belfast–Dublin railway line. It had a population of about 25,000 at the 2011 Census and is within the
Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon district Ulster Scots: ''Airmagh, Bannbrig an Craigavon'' , settlement_type = District , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_type1 = Constituent country , subdivision_type2 = , subdivision_type3 = , ...
. For some purposes, Lurgan is treated as part of the "Craigavon Urban Area" along with neighbouring
Craigavon Craigavon may refer to: * Craigavon, County Armagh, a planned town in Northern Ireland ** Craigavon Borough Council, 1972–2015 local government area centred on the planned town * Viscount Craigavon, title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** ...
and
Portadown Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...
. Lurgan is characteristic of many Plantation of Ulster settlements, with its straight, wide planned streets. It is the site of a number of historic listed buildings including
Brownlow House Brownlow House, also known as Brownlow Castle and Lurgan Castle, is a Grade A listed 19th century house located in Lurgan, Northern Ireland. It was built for Irish politician Charles Brownlow, 1st Baron Lurgan in 1833 by Scottish architect Willi ...
and
Lurgan Town Hall Lurgan Town Hall is a municipal structure in Union Street, Lurgan, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The structure, which is primarily used as a community, arts and resource centre, is a Grade B1 listed building. History Following their election ...
. Lurgan Park is the largest urban park in Northern Ireland. Historically the town was known as a major centre for the production of textiles (mainly linen) after the
industrial revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
and it continued to be a major producer of textiles until that industry steadily declined in the late 20th century. The development of the 'new city' of
Craigavon Craigavon may refer to: * Craigavon, County Armagh, a planned town in Northern Ireland ** Craigavon Borough Council, 1972–2015 local government area centred on the planned town * Viscount Craigavon, title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** ...
had a major impact on Lurgan in the 1960s when much industry was attracted to the area.


History

The name Lurgan is an anglicisation of the Irish name ''An Lorgain''. This literally means "the shin", but in placenames means a shin-shaped hill or ridge (i.e. one that is long, low and narrow). Earlier names of Lurgan include ''Lorgain Chlann Bhreasail'' (anglicised ''Lurganclanbrassil'', meaning "the long low ridge of Clanbrassil") and ''Lorgain Bhaile Mhic Cana'' (anglicised ''Lurganvallivackan'', meaning "the long low ridge of McCann's settlement"). The
Mac Cana The Mac Cana were a Gaelic Irish clan who held lands in Clancann and Clanbrasil in what is now northern County Armagh, and had the title of 'Lords of Clanbrasil'. It is the origin of the surname McCann. Etymology The name ''Mac Cana'' mea ...
(McCanns) were a
sept A sept is a division of a family, especially of a Scottish or Irish family. The term is used in both Scotland and Ireland, where it may be translated as ''sliocht'', meaning "progeny" or "seed", which may indicate the descendants of a person ...
of the O'Neills and Lords of Clanbrassil before the Plantation of Ulster in the early 17th century. About 1610, during the
Plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
and at a time when the area was sparsely populated by
Irish Gaels The Gaels ( ; ga, Na Gaeil ; gd, Na Gàidheil ; gv, Ny Gaeil ) are an ethnolinguistic group native to Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man in the British Isles. They are associated with the Gaelic languages: a branch of the Celtic languag ...
, the lands of Lurgan were granted to the
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
lord William Brownlow and his family. Initially the Brownlow family settled near the lough at Annaloist, but by 1619, on a nearby ridge, they had established a castle and bawn for their own accommodation, and "''a fair Town, consisting of 42 Houses, all of which are inhabited with English Families, and the streets all paved clean through also to water Mills, and a Wind Mill, all for corn.''" Brownlow became MP for Armagh in the Irish Parliament in 1639. During the Irish Rebellion of 1641, Brownlow's castle and bawn were destroyed, and he and his wife and family were taken prisoner and brought to Armagh and then to Dungannon in
County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an administrative division for local government but retai ...
. The land was then passed to the
Mac Cana The Mac Cana were a Gaelic Irish clan who held lands in Clancann and Clanbrasil in what is now northern County Armagh, and had the title of 'Lords of Clanbrasil'. It is the origin of the surname McCann. Etymology The name ''Mac Cana'' mea ...
clan and the O'Hanlons. In 1642, Brownlow and his family were released by the forces of Lord Conway, and as the rebellion ended they returned to their estate in Lurgan. William Brownlow died in 1660, but the family went on to contribute to the development of the linen industry which peaked in the town in the late 17th century.
Theobald Wolfe Tone Theobald Wolfe Tone, posthumously known as Wolfe Tone ( ga, Bhulbh Teón; 20 June 176319 November 1798), was a leading Irish revolutionary figure and one of the founding members in Belfast and Dublin of the United Irishmen, a republican socie ...
would often pass through Lurgan on his journeys, writing in 1792 "Lurgan green as usual".


The Great Famine

A
workhouse In Britain, a workhouse () was an institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. (In Scotland, they were usually known as poorhouses.) The earliest known use of the term ''workhouse' ...
was built in Lurgan and opened in 1841 under the stipulations of the Poor Law which stated that each Poor Law Union would build a workhouse to give relief to the increasing numbers of destitute poor. In 1821 the population of Lurgan was 2,715, this increased to 4,677 by 1841. There were a couple of reasons for this large growth in population. Firstly the opportunities provided by the booming linen industry led many to abandon their meagre living in rural areas and migrate to Lurgan in the hope of gaining employment. Secondly the ever-expanding town gave tradesmen the opportunity to secure work in the construction of new buildings such as Brownlow House. The large numbers of poor workers migrating to the town inevitably resulted in over-crowding and a very low standard of living. When the potato crop failed for a second time in 1846 the resulting starvation led to a quickly overcrowded workhouse which by the end of 1846 exceeded its 800 capacity. In an attempt to alleviate the problem a relief committee was established in Lurgan as they were in other towns. The relief committees raised money by subscription from local landowners, gentry and members of the clergy and were matched by funds from
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
. With these monies food was bought and distributed to the ever-increasing numbers of starving people at soup kitchens. In an attempt to provide employment and thereby give the destitute the means to buy food, Lord Lurgan devised a scheme of land- drainage on his estate. The so-called 'famine roads' were not built in Lurgan to the same extent as the rest of Ireland, although land owners also provided outdoor relief by employing labourers to lower hills and repair existing road. During the period 1846 to 1849 the famine claimed 2,933 lives in the Lurgan Union alone. The Lurgan workhouse was situated in the grounds of what is now Lurgan Hospital and a commemorative mural can be seen along the adjacent Tandragee Road.


New city

The town grew steadily over the centuries as an industrial market town, and in the 1960s, when the UK government was developing a programme of
new towns A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
in Great Britain to deal with population growth, the Northern Ireland government also planned a new town to deal with the projected growth of Belfast and to prevent an undue concentration of population in the city.
Craigavon Craigavon may refer to: * Craigavon, County Armagh, a planned town in Northern Ireland ** Craigavon Borough Council, 1972–2015 local government area centred on the planned town * Viscount Craigavon, title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** ...
(a name unpopular with the Nationalist community) was designated as a new town in 1965, intended to be a linear city incorporating the neighbouring towns of Lurgan and
Portadown Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...
. The plan largely failed, and today, 'Craigavon' locally refers to the rump of the residential area between the two towns. The Craigavon development, however, did affect Lurgan in a number of ways. The sort of dedicated bicycle and pedestrian paths that were built in Craigavon were also incorporated into newer housing areas in Lurgan, additional land in and around the town was zoned for industrial development, neighbouring rural settlements such as
Aghacommon Aghacommon () is a small village and townland in north County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It lies between Derrymacash (to the northwest), Lurgan (to the east) and Craigavon (to the south). The M1 motorway and Dublin–Belfast railway line are on ...
and
Aghagallon Aghagallon () is a small village and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is about three miles northeast of Lurgan and had a population of 824 in the 2001 Census. Aghagallon has mainly developed along Aghalee Road in a linear ...
were developed as housing areas, and there was an increase in the town's population, although not on the scale that had been forecast. The textile industry remained a main employer in the town until the late twentieth century, with the advent of access to cheaper labour in the developing world leading to a decline in the manufacture of clothing in Lurgan.


The Troubles

Lurgan and the associated towns of Portadown and Craigavon made up part of what was known as the "murder triangle"; an area known for a significant number of incidents and fatalities during
The Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...
. By 2010 the town was one of the few areas in Northern Ireland where so-called
dissident republicans Dissident republicans, renegade republicans, anti-Agreement republicans or anti-ceasefire republicans ( ga, poblachtach easaontach) are Irish republicans who do not support the current peace agreements in Northern Ireland. The agreements follo ...
have a significant level of support. The legacy of the Troubles is continued tension between Roman Catholics and Protestants, which has occasionally erupted into violence at flashpoint '
interface area Interface area is the name given in Northern Ireland to areas where segregated nationalist and unionist residential areas meet. They have been defined as "the intersection of segregated and polarised working class residential zones, in areas w ...
s'. On 5 March 1992, a 1,000 lb truck bomb, believed to have been planted by the IRA, exploded in Main Street causing mass damage to commercial properties. On 5 February 2020, the PSNI found a bomb on a lorry. The Continuity Irish Republican Army admitted they had planted it. They expected the lorry to be put on a North Channel ferry in January 2020.


Geography

Lurgan sits in a relatively flat part of Ireland by the south east shore of Lough Neagh. The two main formations in north Armagh are an area of estuarine clays by the shore of the lough, and a mass of
basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...
farther back. The earliest human settlements in the area were to the northwest of the present day town near the shore of the lough. When the land was handed to the Brownlow family, they initially settled near the lough at Annaloist, but later settled where the town was eventually built. The oldest part of the town, the main street, is built on a long ridge in the
townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...
(''baile fearainn'') of Lurgan. A neighbouring hill is the site of Brownlow House, which overlooks Lurgan Park.


Townlands

Like the rest of Ireland, the Lurgan area has long been divided into
townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...
s, whose names mostly come from the
Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...
. Lurgan sprang up in the townland of the same name. Over time, the surrounding townlands have been built upon and they have given their names to many roads and housing estates. The following is a list of townlands within Lurgan's urban area, alongside their likely etymologies: Shankill parish: * Aghnacloy () * Ballyblagh (from ''Baile Bláthach'' meaning "flowery townland") * Demesne (an English name – this townland was carved out of Drumnamoe and others, and includes Lurgan Park) * Derry (from ''Doire'' meaning "oak grove") * Dougher (formerly ''Doucharron'', probably from ''An Dubhcharn, Dúcharn'' meaning "the black cairn") * Drumnamoe (from ''Druim na mBó'' meaning "ridge of the cows") * Knocknashane (formerly ''Knocknashangan'', from ''Cnoc na Seangán'' meaning "hill of the ants") * Lurgantarry (from ''Lurgain an tSamhraidh'' meaning "summer ridge" or "ridge of the summer grazing") * Shankill (from ''Seanchill'' meaning "old church" or ''Seanchoill'' meaning "old wood") * Taghnevan (formerly ''Tegnevan'', from ''Teach Neamhain'' meaning "Neamhan's house" or "Neamhan's church") * Tannaghmore North & Tannaghmore South (from ''an Tamhnach Mór'' meaning "the big grassy field") * Toberhewny (from ''Tobar Shuibhne'' meaning " Sweeney's well" or ''Tobar Chainnigh'' meaning " Cainneach's well") * Tirsogue (from ''Tír Sídheóg'' meaning "land of the fairies") Seagoe parish: * Ballynamony (from ''Baile na Mónadh'' meaning "townland of the bog") * Drumnakelly (from ''Dromainn Uí Cheallaigh'' meaning "O’Kelly's ridge") * Silverwood (an English name – formerly called ''Killinargit'', from ''Coill an Airgid'' meaning "wood of the silver") * Turmoyra (from ''Tír Maighre'' meaning "land of the salmon")


Climate

Lurgan has a
temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...
climate in common with inland areas in Ireland. Summer temperatures can reach the 20s °C and it is rare for them to go higher than . The consistently humid climate that prevails over Ireland can make temperatures feel uncomfortable when they stray into the high 20s °C (80–85 °F), more so than similar temperatures in hotter climates in the rest of Europe.


Governance

Lurgan is part of the Upper Bann constituency for the purpose of elections to the
UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremac ...
at
Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...
. This has long been a safe unionist seat and the current MP is
Carla Lockhart Carla Rebecca Lockhart (born 28 February 1985) is a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician, who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Upper Bann since the 2019 general election. She was previously a Member of the Northern Ireland As ...
of the Democratic Unionist Party. Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly at Stormont are elected from six-member constituencies using
proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...
and using the same constituencies as for Westminster. Lurgan
town commissioners Town commissioners were elected local government bodies that existed in urban areas in Ireland from the 19th century until 2002. Larger towns with commissioners were converted to urban districts by the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898, with ...
were first elected in 1855, and they were replaced by Lurgan Urban District Council following the
Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 (61 & 62 Vict. c. 37) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that established a system of local government in Ireland similar to that already created for England, ...
. This effectively ended landlord control of local government in Ireland. The town council was abolished when local government was reformed in Northern Ireland in 1973 under the
Local Government (Boundaries) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971 The Local Government (Boundaries) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971 was an Act of the Parliament of Northern Ireland, passed in 1971 to replace the previous system of local authorities established by the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898. The system ...
and the
Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 The Local Government (Northern Ireland) Act 1972 (1972 c. 9) was an Act of the Parliament of Northern Ireland that constituted district councils to administer the twenty-six local government districts created by the Local Government (Boundaries ...
. These abolished the two-tier system of town and county councils replacing it with the single-tier system. Lurgan was placed under the jurisdiction of Craigavon Borough Council, and remained so until a new act streamlined and merged the various districts in 2015. Today Lurgan forms part of the new
Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon District Ulster Scots: ''Airmagh, Bannbrig an Craigavon'' , settlement_type = District , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_type1 = Constituent country , subdivision_type2 = , subdivision_type3 = , ...
. The Lurgan area contains the following wards: Church, Donaghcloney, Knocknashane, Magheralin, Mourneview, Parklake, and Waringstown. Seven councillors are elected to represent the Lurgan electoral area on the
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council is a local authority that was established on 1 April 2015. It replaced Armagh City and District Council, Banbridge District Council and Craigavon Borough Council. The first elections to the a ...
. The councillors for the DEA are:


Demography

For census purposes, Lurgan is not treated as a separate entity by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA). Instead, it is combined with
Craigavon Craigavon may refer to: * Craigavon, County Armagh, a planned town in Northern Ireland ** Craigavon Borough Council, 1972–2015 local government area centred on the planned town * Viscount Craigavon, title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** ...
,
Portadown Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...
and
Bleary Bleary (likely ) is a small village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is near the County Armagh border and the settlements of Craigavon, Lurgan and Portadown. In the 2011 Census its population was counted as part of Craigav ...
to form the "Craigavon Urban Area". A fairly accurate population count can be found by combining the data of the electoral wards that make up the Lurgan urban area. These are Church, Court, Drumnamoe, Knocknashane, Mourneview, Parklake, Taghnevan and Woodville. On the day of the last census (27 March 2011) the combined population of these wards was 25,093. Of this population: * 62.2% were from a Catholic background, and 33.7% were from a Protestant or other Christian background The town is divided along ethnic/political/sectarian lines with entire housing areas being almost exclusively Nationalist/Catholic/Irish or almost exclusively Unionist/Protestant/British. The north end of the town centre is considered Nationalist/Catholic, the south end is considered Unionist/Protestant, with the "invisible dividing line" crossing Market Street at Castle Lane and Carnegie Street. In the 1980s there were two Unionist/Protestant enclaves in the north end of the town, Gilpinstown and Wakehurst. They have both since changed to become Nationalist/Catholic areas as Unionists/Protestants gradually moved out. There was a Synagogue at 49 North Street for the Lurgan Hebrew Congregation, founded prior to 1906 by Joseph Herbert (originally Herzberg) from Tukums in Latvia, but this closed in the 1920s around the time of the founder's death.


Economy

Lurgan has historically been an industrial town in which the linen industry predominated as a source of employment during the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
, and is said to have employed as many as 18,000 handloom weavers at the end of the 19th century, a figure significantly higher than the town's resident population at the time. That particular branch of the textile industry declined as consumer tastes changed, but other textiles continued to be produced in the town providing a major source of employment until the 1990s and 2000s when the textile industry across the UK suffered a major decline as a result of outsourcing to low wage countries. The large Goodyear fan-belt factory at Silverwood Industrial Estate was a product of the Craigavon development when large tracts of land in Lurgan, Portadown, and areas in between were zoned off for exclusive industrial use. The Goodyear factory closed in 1983 after failing to make a profit, resulting in the loss of 750 jobs. The facility was later partly occupied by Wilson Double Deck Trailers and DDL Electronics. Silverwood Industrial Estate continues to host other manufacturing and light engineering firms. Other industrial areas in the town are Annesborough and Halfpenny Valley (Portadown Road) industrial estates; areas in which growth has been limited compared to other industrial estates in the Craigavon Borough. A key component of the Craigavon development was a central business district halfway between Lurgan and Portadown that would serve as the city centre for the whole of the new city. What was built was an office building, a court house, a civic building, and a small shopping centre alongside several acres of parkland that were developed around the newly created
balancing lake A balancing lake (also flood basin or Sustainable urban drainage scheme) is a term used in the U.K. describing an element of an urban drainage system used to control flooding by temporarily storing flood waters. The term balancing pond is also ...
s that also serve as part of the area's drainage system. In the 1990s, the shopping centre was significantly expanded to form what is now Rushmere Retail Park, containing many major retail stores. This has had a detrimental effect on the retail trade in Lurgan in the same way that out-of-town shopping developments in other parts of Northern Ireland have damaged other traditional town centres. The town's Chamber of Commerce is not functioning and has remained dormant despite numerous attempts to revive it.


Culture and community


Cultural references

There is a figure of speech used in Ireland – ''to have a face as long as a Lurgan spade'' – meaning "to look miserable". The origins of this expression are disputed. One theory is that a "Lurgan spade" was an under-paid workman digging what is now the Lurgan Park lake. Another theory is that it could be from the Irish language ''lorga spád'' meaning the shaft (literally "shin") of a spade. The
ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
''
Master McGrath Master McGrath (1866–1873) was a famous Greyhound in the sport of hare coursing. Early days Master McGrath was born in County Waterford, Ireland. A small, weak pup, he went on to become the most celebrated and successful dog of his time. Maste ...
'' concerns a
greyhound The English Greyhound, or simply the Greyhound, is a breed of dog, a sighthound which has been bred for coursing, greyhound racing and hunting. Since the rise in large-scale adoption of retired racing Greyhounds, the breed has seen a resurgenc ...
of that name from Lurgan which became an Irish sporting hero. The dog was bought in Lurgan by the Brownlow family, and the song also mentions his owner Charles Brownlow, referred to in the lyrics as Lord Lurgan. Master McGrath won the
Waterloo Cup The Waterloo Cup was a coursing event organised by the National Coursing Club. The three-day event was run annually at Great Altcar in Lancashire, England from 1836 to 2005 and it used to attract tens of thousands of spectators to watch and gamble ...
hare coursing Hare coursing is the pursuit of hares with greyhounds and other sighthounds, which chase the hare by sight, not by scent. In some countries, it is a legal, competitive activity in which dogs are tested on their ability to run, overtake and turn ...
competition three times in 1868, 1870 and 1871 at a time when this was a high-profile sport. A post mortem found that he had a heart twice the size of what is normal for a dog of his size. He is remembered all over the town, including in its coat of arms. The dog was named McGrath after the kennel boy responsible for its care. A statue of him was unveiled at Craigavon Civic Centre in 1993, over 120 years after his last glory in 1871. The statue was relocated to Lurgan town centre in 2013. A festival is also held yearly in his honour. A Lurgan pub is also named after Master McGrath. The town is a frequent recipient of derision by the BBC Northern Ireland comedy panel show The Blame Game.


Community facilities

Oxford Island is a nature reserve on the shore of Lough Neagh that includes Kinnego Marina and the Lough Neagh Discovery Center, which is an interpretive visitor centre offering information about the surrounding wildlife, conference facilities, and a café. Lurgan Park, a few hundred yards from the main street, is the largest urban park in Northern Ireland and the second-largest in Ireland after Phoenix Park, Dublin. It used to be part of the estate of Brownlow House, a 19th-century Elizabethan-style manor house. In 1893, the land was purchased by Lurgan Borough Council and opened as a public park in 1909 by Earl Aberdeen, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. It includes a sizeable artificial lake and an original
Coalbrookdale Coalbrookdale is a village in the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire, England, containing a settlement of great significance in the history of iron ore smelting. It lies within the civil parish called the Gorge. This is where iron ore was first s ...
fountain. Today the park is home to annual summer events such as the Lurgan Agricultural Show, and the Lurgan Park Rally, noted as the largest annual motor sport event in Northern Ireland and a stage in the
Circuit of Ireland The Circuit of Ireland International Rally is an annual automobile rally, which was first held in 1931 making it the third oldest rally in the world. The most recent event was held in 2016. ''The Circuit'', as it is colloquially known, is org ...
rally. Mount Zion House in Edward St, formerly the St Joseph's
Convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...
, is now a cross-community centre run by the Shankill Lurgan Community Association/Community Projects. It is funded by the
Department for Social Development The Department for Communities (DfC, Irish: ''An Roinn Pobal'', Ulster Scots: ''Depairtment fur Commonities'') is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The minister with overall responsibility f ...
, the EU Special Programme for Peace and Reconciliation, and the Physical and Social Environment Programme.


Landmarks

Lurgan town centre is distinctive for its wide main street, Market Street, one of the widest in Ireland, which is dominated at one end by Shankill (Anglican) Church in Church Place. A grey granite hexagonal temple-shaped
war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...
sits at the entrance to Church Place, topped by a bronze-winged statue representing the spirit of Victorious Peace. A marble pillar at the centre displays the names of over 400 men from the town who lost their lives in the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The rows of buildings on either side of Market Street are punctuated periodically by large access gates that lead to the space behind the buildings, gates that are wide enough to drive a horse and cart through. The town's straight planned streets are a common feature in many Plantation towns, and its industrial history is still evident in the presence of many former linen mills that have since been modified for modern use. At the junction of Market Street and Union Street is
Lurgan Town Hall Lurgan Town Hall is a municipal structure in Union Street, Lurgan, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The structure, which is primarily used as a community, arts and resource centre, is a Grade B1 listed building. History Following their election ...
, a listed building erected in 1868. It was the first site of the town's library in 1895, was temporarily used as a police station from 1973 and is today available for conferences and community functions.
Brownlow House Brownlow House, also known as Brownlow Castle and Lurgan Castle, is a Grade A listed 19th century house located in Lurgan, Northern Ireland. It was built for Irish politician Charles Brownlow, 1st Baron Lurgan in 1833 by Scottish architect Willi ...
, known locally as 'Lurgan Castle', is a distinctive mansion built in 1833 with Scottish
sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
in an Elizabethan style with a lantern-shaped tower and prominent array of chimney pots. It was originally owned by the Brownlow family, and today is owned by the Lurgan Loyal Orange District Lodge. A former lodge to the Brownlow House estate became the Brownlow Arms Hotel on Market Street, run by the McCaffrey family, which served as the US 5th Army's Officers' Mess during WW2 but closed in the early 1960s. The adjacent Lurgan Park, now a public park owned by Craigavon Borough Council, used to be part of the same estate. The park is the venue for the
Lurgan Park Rally The Lurgan Park Rally was an annual rally event held in Lurgan Park in Lurgan, Northern Ireland from 1980 to 2016. In 2010, the rally was given a new logo and another new logo was released for the 2012 rally. The Rally also held the ''Escort Mk2 ...
.


Religious sites

The site of what is now Shankill cemetery served as a place of worship over the centuries. It began in ancient times as a simple double
ring fort Ringforts, ring forts or ring fortresses are circular fortified settlements that were mostly built during the Bronze Age up to about the year 1000. They are found in Northern Europe, especially in Ireland. There are also many in South Wales ...
, the outline of which is still noticeable, and is today an historic burial site holding the remains of people who lived in the earliest days of the town's existence, including the Brownlow family. Dougher cemetery is another old graveyard that was donated to the Catholic people by the Brownlows following passage of the
Catholic Relief Act The Roman Catholic Relief Bills were a series of measures introduced over time in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries before the Parliaments of Great Britain and the United Kingdom to remove the restrictions and prohibitions impose ...
. The two most prominent modern places of worship are Shankill Parish Church in Church Place and St Peter's Church in North Street, the steeples of which are visible from far outside the town. Shankill Parish Church belongs to the Anglican
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 secon ...
. The original church was established at Oxford Island on the shore of Lough Neagh in 1411, but a new church was built in Lurgan on the site of what is now Shankill Cemetery in 1609 as the town became the main centre of settlement in the area. It was eventually found to be too small given the growth of the town, and the Irish Parliament granted permission to build a replacement in 1725 one mile away on the 'Green of Lurgan', now known as Church Place, where it stands to this day. It is believed to be the largest parish church in Ireland, and contains the only set of change ringing bells in County Armagh. Following passage of the Catholic Relief Act, Charles Brownlow granted a site to the Roman Catholic parish priest the Reverend William O'Brien in 1829 for the construction of a church on Distillery Hill, now known as lower North Street. It was there that work began in 1832 on what is now St Peter's Church. In 1966, another Catholic church, St Paul's, was built at the junction of Francis Street and Parkview Street. This was a radical departure from traditional church architecture with its grey plaster finish, copper roof, slim spire, hexagonal angles and modern design throughout. Many of its architectural features such as the copper roof and gray plaster finish are shared by the neighbouring St Paul's School. It was designed to cope with the extra demand for worship space following the growth of the surrounding Taghnevan and Shankill housing estates. The first
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
church was built in Nettleton's Court, Queen Street in 1778. It was found to be too small and a new church was built on High Street in 1802, and replaced by a newer building in front of it in 1826. This High Street Mehtodist Church was extensively renovated in 1910 and stands to this day sporting a simple facade.


Education

It was the late 19th century that saw the development of formal education in Lurgan and a significant move away from the less organised hedge schools of before. Today, schools in Lurgan operate under the
Dickson Plan The Dickson Plan is a school transfer system implemented in North County Armagh in Northern Ireland. It is a two tier system in which the majority of pupils in the Craigavon Borough Council Area and parts of Armagh City and District Council Area at ...
, a transfer system in north Armagh that allows pupils at age 11 the option of taking the 11-plus exam to enter
grammar schools A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school, ...
, with pupils in comprehensive junior high schools being sorted into grammar and non-grammar streams. Pupils can get promoted to or demoted from the grammar stream during their time in those schools depending on the development of their academic performance, and at age 14 can take subject-based exams across the syllabus to qualify for entry into a dedicated grammar school to pursue GCSEs and
A-levels The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...
. As is common in Northern Ireland, most of the schools in Lurgan are attended mainly by children from one or other of the two main ethno-religious blocs, reflecting the existence of deep-seated ethnic, sectarian and political divisions in society. Some schools are in the Catholic 'maintained' sector, i.e. maintained by the
Council for Catholic Maintained Schools The Council for Catholic Maintained Schools is the advocate for Catholic Maintained Schools in Northern Ireland. The council represents trustees, schools and governors on issues such as raising and maintaining standards, the school estate and t ...
, and others are controlled directly by the state. Directly controlled state schools generally have a predominantly Protestant intake.


Primary education

* Lurgan Model Primary School (Controlled) - this school was part of the national schools programme proposed in 1831 in which each county in Ireland would have at least one school that would serve as an example to other national schools in the area and as a teacher training establishment (although teacher training did not take place at this particular school). Initially it had a multi-denominational intake, offered such services as night classes and industry-relevant
vocational A vocation () is an occupation to which a person is especially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. People can be given information about a new occupation through student orientation. Though now often used in non-religious c ...
courses, and was enthusiastically supported by William Brownlow who is thought to have brought the school to the town. It was undermined, however, by church interests, which were opposed to its lack of ecclesiastical control, and criticism of the efficiency of its management, hence losing much of its earlier prestige as the premier educational establishment in the town. It is now co-educational, non-denominational and accepts pupils irrespective of race or religion. * St. Francis' Primary School and Bunscoil Naomh Proinsias (Catholic Maintained) * St Teresa's Primary School (Catholic Maintained) * St Anthony's Primary School (Catholic Maintained) * Tannaghmore Primary School (Catholic Maintained) * Tullygally Primary School (Catholic Maintained) * Carrick Primary School (Controlled) * Dickson Primary School (Controlled) * King's Park Primary School (Controlled)


Post-primary education

*
Lurgan College Lurgan College is a selective, non-denominational, co-educational 14-19 Grammar School, situated in the town of Lurgan, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. History In lieu of the establishment of Lurgan Model primary school in 1863, the town of Lur ...
- a co-ed 14–18 grammar school, was established in 1873 as an all-boys school to provide what was known as 'classical education' as opposed to the more practical vocational education on offer at the Model School. Its initial charter included a provision that "no person being in Holy Orders, or a minister of any religious denomination shall at any time interfere in the management of the said school, or be appointed to serve as master" and that no religious instruction was to take place during school hours. * St Ronan's College - A co-ed secondary school for 11-18 year olds. It was formed from the merger of St Mary's Junior High School, St Paul's Junior High School, and
St Michael's Grammar School , motto_translation = For the Church of God , location = 25 Chapel Street, St Kilda, Victoria , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = Australia Melbourne , ...
. St Mary's Intermediate School was built on Kitchen Hill after land was acquired from the
Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute of Catholic women founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. As of 2019, the institute had about 6200 sisters worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations. They a ...
in 1955 and was opened in 1959 as an all-girls school. The nearby all-boys St Paul's Intermediate School was opened in 1962. *
Lurgan Junior High School Lurgan () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, near the southern shore of Lough Neagh. Lurgan is about south-west of Belfast and is linked to the city by both the M1 motorway and the Belfast–Dublin railway line. It had a population ...
- A co-educational 11-14 High School. A number of people from Lurgan also attend Lismore Comprehensive School and Brownlow Integrated College in Craigavon. *
Southern Regional College Southern Regional College (SRC) is a further and higher education college in the southern area of Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom. The College has a total of 5 campuses incorporating the two council areas of Armagh, Banbridge and Craigav ...
- Lurgan Technical College was renamed Lurgan College of Further Education, and subsequently merged with Portadown CFE and Banbridge CFE into the larger Upper Bann Institute of Further and Higher Education (UBIFHE). Further education in the region was consolidated further when this institution was merged with other FE colleges in Armagh, Newry and Kilkeel to form the Southern Regional College. It offers vocational courses as an alternative to A-Levels, and adult education services.


Special needs education

Ceara School provides education for pupils aged 3 through 19 who have severe learning difficulties.


Sport and leisure


Facilities

Lurgan has two 18-hole golf courses, an artificial ski slope and an equestrian centre for show jumping.


GAA

Lurgan has a large GAA presence, with Gaelic football being played by clubs Clan na Gael CLG,
Clann Éireann GAC Clann Éireann GAC is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in Lurgan, in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. Clann Éireann GAC, part of Armagh GAA, incorporates a youth club. With a total membership of 1,500, the youth club and GAC provide a ...
, Éire Óg CLG, Sarsfields GAC (
Derrytrasna Derrytrasna () is a small village and townland in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The village is on a plateau surrounded mainly by bogland in the north of the county. It lies between Lough Neagh, Lough Gullion and the River Bann. In the United Ki ...
), St Mary's GAC (
Aghagallon Aghagallon () is a small village and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is about three miles northeast of Lurgan and had a population of 824 in the 2001 Census. Aghagallon has mainly developed along Aghalee Road in a linear ...
), St Michael's GAC (
Magheralin Magheralin () is a village and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the main A3 road between Moira and Lurgan, beside the River Lagan. It had a population of 1,337 people in the 2011 Census. The civil parish of Magheralin c ...
), St Paul's GFC, St Peter's GAC and
Wolfe Tone GAC, Derrymacash Wolfe Tone Gaelic Athletic Club ( ga, De Bhulbh Ton CLG) is a Gaelic Athletic Association, GAA club in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is based in the townland of Derrymacash, on the southern shore of Lough Neagh, close to Lurgan.
. There is also a well-respected girls camogie club at Clann Éireann, and boys hurling club Seán Treasy's, which has been amalgamated at a youth level with Portadown's St Malachy's, to create North Armagh Hurling.


Football

The town is home to
NIFL Premiership The NIFL Premiership, known as the Danske Bank Premiership for sponsorship purposes, and colloquially as the Irish League or Irish Premiership, is a professional association football league which operates as the highest division of the Northe ...
club Glenavon, established in 1889 and based at
Mourneview Park Mourneview Park is a football stadium in Lurgan, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, and is the home ground of NIFL Premiership club Glenavon. The stadium holds 4,160 and was originally built in 1895. The 2008–09 Irish League Cup, 2010–11 ...
. In 1952, Glenavon became the first club outside Belfast to win the Irish League title, and picked up a further two titles in 1957 and 1960.
NIFL Premier Intermediate League The NIFL Premier Intermediate League is the third division of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national association football league in Northern Ireland, and the highest intermediate division in Northern Ireland, occupying level three in ...
club
Dollingstown Dollingstown is a large village in County Down, Northern Ireland, lying between Lurgan and Magheralin. It is within the Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon district. In the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2011 Census it had a population of 2,126 people. ...
play at nearby Planters Park. Lurgan also has a strong footballing scene in the lower leagues, with clubs such as Lurgan Town, Oxford Sunnyside and Craigavon City representing the area in the intermediate divisions of the Mid-Ulster Football League, while Derryhirk United, Hill Street, Lurgan BBOB and Goodyear play in the junior divisions.
Lurgan Celtic Lurgan Celtic Football Club is a Northern Irish intermediate football club based in Lurgan, County Armagh, that currently plays in the Mid-Ulster Football League Junior Division 3. The club was founded, 1903 & re-formed in 1970 who plays in a s ...
previously played in the
NIFL Championship The Northern Ireland Football League Championship (known as the Lough 41 Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the second level of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national football league in Northern Ireland. Clubs in the Championshi ...
and Premier Intermediate League, but following financial difficulties, the club resigned from league football on 15 August 2019, and will resume senior activities from Mid-Ulster Junior Division 3 for the 2020–21 season.


Other sport

Boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...
is a common sport amongst children and adults of all ages and gender, with clubs such as South Paw Boxing and Fitness club and The Fitness Factory being popular choices.
Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
has two clubs, Lurgan Cricket Club and Victoria Cricket Club.
Rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
is played by Lurgan RFC, who share their Pollock Park ground with Lurgan Cricket Club.
Tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
is played by Lurgan Tennis Club which is in Lurgan Park. Lurgan Golf Club is an 18-hole challenging parkland course bordering on Lurgan lake. The
Lurgan Park Rally The Lurgan Park Rally was an annual rally event held in Lurgan Park in Lurgan, Northern Ireland from 1980 to 2016. In 2010, the rally was given a new logo and another new logo was released for the 2012 rally. The Rally also held the ''Escort Mk2 ...
, inaugurated in 1980, was one of the largest motorsport events on the island of Ireland. However, the event has been on hiatus since 2017. Lawn Bowls. Lurgan Park is home to Lurgan Bowling Club who field teams in the NIBA,the NIWBA and the Veterans leagues.


Railway links

Lurgan railway station Lurgan railway station serves Lurgan in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. History The station opened on 18 November 1841. In 1972, the original Great Northern Railway station building was destroyed by a paramilitary bomb, and subsequently t ...
opened by the
Ulster Railway The Ulster Railway was a railway company operating in Ulster, Ireland. The company was incorporated in 1836 and merged with two other railway companies in 1876 to form the Great Northern Railway (Ireland). History The Ulster Railway was auth ...
on 18 November 1841, connecting the town to Belfast Great Victoria Street in the east and
Portadown Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...
and Armagh in the west. The Great Northern Railway of Ireland provided further access to the west of Ulster which was then closed in the 1950s and 1960s from
Portadown railway station Portadown Railway Station serves Portadown in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. History The original Portadown station was sited half a mile east of the present station and opened on 12 September 1842, replacing a temporary station at Seagoe th ...
. Presently
Lurgan railway station Lurgan railway station serves Lurgan in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. History The station opened on 18 November 1841. In 1972, the original Great Northern Railway station building was destroyed by a paramilitary bomb, and subsequently t ...
is run by
Northern Ireland Railways NI Railways, also known as Northern Ireland Railways (NIR) ( ga, Iarnród Thuaisceart Éireann); and for a brief period Ulster Transport Railways (UTR), is the railway operator in Northern Ireland. NIR is a subsidiary of Translink, whose paren ...
with direct trains to Belfast Great Victoria Street and as part of the Dublin-Belfast railway line. The
Enterprise Enterprise (or the archaic spelling Enterprize) may refer to: Business and economics Brands and enterprises * Enterprise GP Holdings, an energy holding company * Enterprise plc, a UK civil engineering and maintenance company * Enterpris ...
runs through Lurgan from
Dublin Connolly Connolly station ( ga, Stáisiún Uí Chonghaile) or Dublin Connolly is one of the busiest railway stations in Dublin and Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. On the North side of the River Liffey, it provides InterC ...
to Belfast Central, and a change of train may be required at
Portadown Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...
to travel to or
Dublin Connolly Connolly station ( ga, Stáisiún Uí Chonghaile) or Dublin Connolly is one of the busiest railway stations in Dublin and Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. On the North side of the River Liffey, it provides InterC ...
. Railway access at
Sydenham Sydenham may refer to: Places Australia * Sydenham, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Sydenham railway station, Sydney * Sydenham, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne ** Sydenham railway line, the name of the Sunbury railway line, Melbourne ...
links into
George Best Belfast City Airport George Best Belfast City Airport is a single-runway airport in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Situated in County Down, it is adjacent to the Port of Belfast and is from Belfast City Centre. It shares the site with the Spirit AeroSystems (for ...
on the line to Bangor.


Road transport and public services

Lurgan is situated by the
M1 motorway The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass, which ...
connecting the town to Belfast. Bus services, provided by
Translink Translink (or TransLink) may refer to: * TransLink (British Columbia), the public transport operator in Vancouver, Canada * Translink (Northern Ireland) Translink is the brand name of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (NITHCo), a ...
, arrive and depart on a regular basis from bus stops on Market Street to Belfast, Portadown, Armagh, Dungannon, and surrounding areas. Electricity is supplied by
Northern Ireland Electricity Northern Ireland Electricity Networks Limited (NIE Networks) is the electricity asset owner of the transmission and distribution infrastructure in Northern Ireland, established in 1993 when the business was privatised. NIE Networks does not gene ...
which was privatised in 1993 and is now a subsidiary of
ESB Group The Electricity Supply Board (ESB; ga, Bord Soláthair an Leictreachais) is a state owned (95%; the rest are owned by employees) electricity company operating in the Republic of Ireland. While historically a monopoly, the ESB now operates as a ...
. The gasworks used to be in North St., but there is no longer any
town gas Coal gas is a flammable gaseous fuel made from coal and supplied to the user via a piped distribution system. It is produced when coal is heated strongly in the absence of air. Town gas is a more general term referring to manufactured gaseous ...
since it was abolished in Northern Ireland in the 1980s by the Thatcher government for being uneconomical, although it was restored to the greater Belfast area in 1996. Water is supplied by
Northern Ireland Water Northern Ireland Water Limited ( ga, Uisce Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlan Wattèr'') is a water company in Northern Ireland. Formerly an executive agency within Northern Ireland Executive, it became a government-owned co ...
, a public owned utility.


Media

Lurgan is served by two weekly local newspapers. The
Lurgan Mail The ''Lurgan Mail'' was founded in 1889 by Lewis Robert Richardson. The ''Lurgan Mail'' is a tabloid weekly newspaper based in Lurgan, County Armagh in Northern Ireland. It is published on Wednesday evenings, though each edition always bears the T ...
, published by
Johnston Publishing (NI) Johnston Publishing (NI) is a large newspaper group in Northern Ireland consisting of Mortons Newspapers and the News Letter, and is a holding company of JPIMedia. The company was formed following Johnston Press's purchase of Century Newspapers (p ...
, reports news and sport from around the local area. The 'Lurgan and Portadown Examiner' which reported local news and sport was owned by Observer Newspapers NI Ltd, based in Dungannon. This business closed in 2017 and the newspaper ceased publication.


Notable people


Living people

*
Jocelyn Bell Burnell Dame Susan Jocelyn Bell Burnell (; Bell; born 15 July 1943) is an astrophysicist from Northern Ireland who, as a postgraduate student, discovered the first radio pulsars in 1967. The discovery eventually earned the Nobel Prize in Physics in ...
(born 1943) - Northern Irish astrophysicist, discovered the first radio pulsars. * Barry Douglas (born 1960) - classical pianist and conductor; has residences in Paris and Lurgan. * Jim Harvey (born 1958) - Lurgan-born professional footballer; assistant manager of the
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 ...
football team; played for Glenavon, Arsenal and
Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ado ...
. *
Geraldine Heaney Geraldine Heaney (born October 1, 1967) is an Irish-Canadian ice hockey coach and former defenceman. She played 18 seasons and over 1,000 games with the Toronto Aeros organization, won six Ontario provincial championships and was named Ontario W ...
(born 1967) - Lurgan-born
Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
women’s
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
player and Olympic gold medallist. * Gayle Williamson (born 1980) - Miss Northern Ireland 2002; and
Miss United Kingdom Miss United Kingdom is a title held by the highest-ranked contestant from the UK in the Miss World pageant. The winner sometimes competes at Miss International the following year under the ''Britain'' or ''United Kingdom'' banner. From 1958 ...
2002 *
Neil Lennon Neil Francis Lennon (born 25 June 1971) is a Northern Irish football coach and former player. During his playing career he represented English clubs Manchester City, Crewe Alexandra and Leicester City. Lennon moved to Celtic in 2000, where he ...
(born 1971) - football player and manager *
Jonathan Magee Jonathan Magee (born 9 February 1972) is a Northern Irish academic and former footballer. Football career Magee is the son of Eric Magee who played professional football in England for Oldham Athletic. Jonathan began his own career with two ...
(born 1972) - academic and former footballer


Deceased people

* Edward Costello (1887-1916) - took part in the Easter Rising in April 1916, received a fatal bullet wound to the head on 25 April and died in Jervis Street Hospital,
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
. *
John Cushnie John Alexander Montgomery Cushnie (14 May 1943 – 31 December 2009) was a landscape designer, author, journalist, and broadcaster in the United Kingdom, best known as a regular panellist on the long-running BBC Radio 4 programme ''Gardeners' ...
(1943-2009) - broadcaster and panellist on
BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
show Gardeners' Question Time; presented BBCNI TV show The Greenmount Garden. * Field Marshal Sir
John Dill Sir John Greer Dill, (25 December 1881 – 4 November 1944) was a senior British Army officer with service in both the First World War and the Second World War. From May 1940 to December 1941 he was the Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS ...
(1881–1944) - British commander in World War I and World War II; later a diplomat; born in Lurgan * William McFadzean (1895–1916) - soldier; died when he threw himself on a box of primed grenades prior to the Battle of the Somme and was awarded the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
. * Len Ganley (1943-2011) - MBE, a world championship snooker referee; was a resident of the town. * Billy Hanna (c. 1929–1975) - founder and first commander of the
Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former British Army soldier from Northern Ireland. The group undertook an armed campaign ...
's Mid-Ulster Brigade; native of Lurgan. He was shot dead outside his home in the Mourneview estate by members of his own organisation. *
Sammy Jones Samuel Percy Jones (1 August 1861 – 14 July 1951) was an Australian cricketer who played 12 Tests between 1882 and 1888. A solid right-handed batsman and a handy medium pace bowler, Jones excelled for New South Wales and later for Queensl ...
(1911–1993) - professional footballer who made over 100 appearances for Blackpool and received one cap for the Irish national team; born in Lurgan * James Logan (1674–1751) - born in Lurgan; became an American colonial statesman and scholar, secretary to his friend
William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...
, and was noted as a jurist, political philosopher, and botanist. * Cecil Maguire (1930–2020) -
Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
landscape and figurative artist. *
Richard McGhee Richard McGhee (1851 –7 April 1930) was an Irish Protestant Nationalist home rule politician. A Georgist Land League and trade union activist, he was a Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain a ...
(1851–1930) -
Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
Protestant Nationalist Protestant Irish Nationalists are adherents of Protestantism in Ireland who also support Irish nationalism. Protestants have played a large role in the development of Irish nationalism since the eighteenth century, despite most Irish nationa ...
home rule politician;
Land League The Irish National Land League ( Irish: ''Conradh na Talún'') was an Irish political organisation of the late 19th century which sought to help poor tenant farmers. Its primary aim was to abolish landlordism in Ireland and enable tenant farme ...
and trade union activist;
Member of Parliament (United Kingdom) In the United Kingdom, a member of Parliament (MP) is an individual elected to serve in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Electoral system All 650 members of the UK House of Commons are elected using the first-past- ...
for more than 20 years. * Rosemary Nelson (1958–1999) - human rights solicitor; killed by a loyalist car bomb * Martin O'Hagan (1950-2001) - journalist for Sunday World newspaper; murdered on 28 September 2001 in front of his wife near his own home in the town. *
George William Russell George William Russell (10 April 1867 – 17 July 1935), who wrote with the pseudonym Æ (often written AE or A.E.), was an Irish writer, editor, critic, poet, painter and Irish nationalist. He was also a writer on mysticism, and a centra ...
(1867–1935) - writer; wrote under pseudonym Æ; Anglo-Irish supporter of the nationalist movement in Ireland; critic, poet, painter, mystical writer, and was at the centre of a group of followers of
theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion ...
in Dublin for many years. * Philip Felix Smith (1825–1906) - soldier; recipient of the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
; birth is recorded in the parish of Shankill at St. Peter's RC Church, Lurgan. * Norman Uprichard (1928–2011) - goalkeeper who began his career playing Gaelic Football with St. Peter's GAC. His decision to sign for Glenavon cost him a league medal under the GAA's now-defunct 'Rule 27'. He was finally awarded his medal by St. Peter's in 2004. He went on to play for
Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at the County Ground sin ...
,
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
and
Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...
at club level, and won 18 caps for
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 ...
at international level.


See also

*
List of towns in Northern Ireland This is an alphabetical list of towns and villages in Northern Ireland. For a list sorted by population, see the list of settlements in Northern Ireland by population. The towns of Armagh, Lisburn and Newry are also classed as cities (see city st ...
* List of villages in Northern Ireland *
List of townlands in County Armagh In Ireland Counties are divided into Civil Parishes and Parishes are further divided into townlands. The following is a list of townlands in County Armagh, Northern Ireland: __NOTOC__ A Abbey Park, Acton, Aghacommon, Aghadavoyle, Aghamoa ...


References


External links


Craigavon Borough Council


Other links

* {{Good article Towns in County Armagh Civil parish of Shankill, County Armagh Townlands of County Armagh