Castlerock
| Castlerock | |
| County Londonderry | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Castlerock, from the beach | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | C755341 |
| Location: | 55°8’60"N, 6°46’60"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 1,326 (2001) |
| Post town: | Coleraine |
| Postcode: | BT51 |
| Dialling code: | 028 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Causeway Coast & Glens |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
East Londonderry |
Castlerock is a seaside village in County Londonderry, standing five miles west of Coleraine. It is very popular with summer tourists, and has numerous apartment blocks and three caravan sites.
Castlerock Golf Club has both 9 and 18-hole links courses bounded by the beach, the River Bann and the Belfast-Londonderry railway line. The village had a recorded population of 1,326 people in the 2001 Census.
This village was also the holiday destination for the scholar and author C S Lewis, a Belfast man by birth who holidayed in Castlerock as a child. He is said to have taken from Downhill House for some of his books including The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
History
Local historical interest is concentrated on the 18th century Bishop of Derry's ruined palace, the Mussenden Temple on the clifftop, and the Black Glen set within the Downhill Estate, which is now owned by the National Trust. The palace and estate were created by Frederick Hervey, 4th Earl of Bristol who was the Bishop of Derry in the 1780s. The Mussenden Temple, with its precarious perch on the basalt cliff edge is one of the most photographed scenes in Ireland.
The 17th century Hezlett House is a thatched cottage with a cruck structure and is situated at the crossroads near the village. Built around 1691,[1] it was originally a rectory or farmhouse.[2] Also at the adjacent crossroads is an ancient tree.
The bodies of the two victims of infamous dentist Colin Howell were found in Castlerock on 19 May 1991.[3]
Sport and leisure
- Football: Villagers FC.
Castlerock is home to Guysmere Summer Camp, which is owned and run by the Presbyterian Church.
Transport links
Castlerock railway station opened on 18 July 1853. A rail service currently runs in a mostly bi-hourly service in both directions (west to Londonderry Waterside or east to Coleraine and onward to Belfast Central and Belfast Great Victoria Street) on weekdays.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Castlerock) |
References
- ↑ Eccles J 1996, Downhill: A Scrapbook of People and Place, London, Printing Ideas & Graphics, p 184
- ↑ Eccles J 1996
- ↑ How evil dentist killed his wife and lover's husband Coleraine Times