Laurelvale
Laurelvale Irish: Tamhnaigh Bhealtaine[1] | |
County Armagh | |
---|---|
Mullavilly parish church | |
Location | |
Grid reference: | J006478 |
Location: | 54°22’8"N, 6°27’5"W |
Data | |
Population: | 1,284 (2001) |
Post town: | Craigavon |
Postcode: | BT62 |
Dialling code: | 028 |
Local Government | |
Parliamentary constituency: |
Newry & Armagh |
Laurelvale is a village in County Armagh. It is beside the smaller village of Mullavilly and the two are sometimes referred to as Laurelvale-Mullavilly[2][3] or Mullavilly-Laurelvale.[4][5] The village is three miles south of Portadown and 1½ miles north-west of Tandragee.[6] It had a population of 1,284 people in the 2011 Census.[7]
Name
Laurelvale is within the townland of Tamnaghvelton. The name was taken from the name of a mansion that was built in the 19th Century. Mullavilly was named after the townland in which it lies. The name comes from the Irish Mullach a' Bhile, meaning "hilltop of the sacred tree".[8][9]
History
Laurelvale was founded in the 1850s by Thomas Sinton JP (1826–1887) to house the workers in his linen mill of Thomas Sinton & Co. Ltd, which was in the village. At its height, Sintons' Mill had over a thousand workers. The mill has since been demolished. The company remained in family ownership until 1945 when it was taken over by the Ministry of Defence and operated by Hoffmans (who made ball bearings for gun turrets). The Sinton family also ran mills and bleach-works in Tandragee, Killyleagh, Tullylish and at Ravarnet outside Hillsborough, County Down. Thomas Sinton also built a large house in the village, Laurelvale House, which, following the Second World War, was the home of Michael Torrens-Spence, Lord Lieutenant of County Armagh. Laurelvale House has since been demolished to make way for housing development.
Churches
- Mullavilly Parish Church
- St Mary's Roman Catholic Church (Laurelvale)
Sport
Laurelvale F.C. has a ground in the Laurel Park area of the village. Laurelvale Cricket Club has a clubhouse on Mullavilly Road.
References
- ↑ Placenames Database of Ireland: Laurelvale
- ↑ "Roads Service to deliver new traffic calming measures for Laurelvale". Portadown Times, 21 December 2007.
- ↑ Armagh Area Plan 2004 Adoption Statement 1995. Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland).
- ↑ "Roundabout on way at Laurelvale accident hot-spot". Portadown Times, 2 December 2008.
- ↑ Mullavilly News, September 2010 issue.
- ↑ Free Map Tools
- ↑ "Laurelvale-Mulavilly". NI Statistics and Research Agency. http://www.nisra.gov.uk/census/2011/results/settlements.html. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
- ↑ Placenames NI: Mullavilly
- ↑ Placenames Database of Ireland: Mullavilly
Further Reading
- Mullavilly - Portrait of an Ulster Parish, by Brett Hannam, Lulu, 2010.