Spa, County Down
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Spa 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 Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to 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 ...
, close to
Ballynahinch Ballynahinch may refer to: Northern Ireland * Ballynahinch, County Armagh, a townland *Ballynahinch, County Down, a town Republic of Ireland *Ballynahinch (barony), in County Galway *Ballynahinch, County Galway, a townland in County Galway * Bally ...
. It is situated in the
Down District Council Down District Council was a Local Council in County Down in Northern Ireland. It merged with Newry and Mourne District Council in April 2015 under local government reorganisation in Northern Ireland to become Newry, Mourne and Down District Cou ...
area. Spa also has a small primary school which, in recent years, has had to expand to accommodate the increasing number of pupils resulting from the development of the new housing estates. It also has an
Orange Hall Orange Hall may refer to: ;in Ireland * Orange Institution The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protes ...
. There is a lake just outside the village.


History

Spa was found to have a
mineral spring Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produces hard water, water that contains dissolved minerals. Salts, sulfur compounds, and gases are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage underg ...
sometime in the late 17th century. In 1810 two pumps were put in by David Ker, local landlord and owner of the nearby Montalto estate, and in 1840 Assembly Rooms (including a ballroom) were built by his son. There was also a hotel and a maze for visitors, who came by train to Ballynahinch and then to Spa by
jaunting car A jaunting car is a light two-wheeled carriage for a single horse, with a seat in front for the driver. In its most common form with seats for two or four persons placed back to back, with the foot-boards projecting over the wheels and the typical ...
. While operational in the 1920s, the wells and hotel closed later in the 20th century.


Religion

Spa Presbyterian Church is situated at the main crossroads in the village. The church building was paid for by a wealthy merchant from
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 ...
, James Robert McQuiston, who had come to Spa to take the waters. It was designed by architects Young and Mackenzie 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 the builder was John Russell of
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
. The foundation stone was laid in 1871 and the church opened in July 1872.


See also

*
List of villages 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 stat ...
*
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 stat ...


References

{{authority control Villages in County Down