PHOTOGRAPHED MARCH 2019
This church was established in 1868. It was damaged during Blitz in 1941 and later restored.
St Mary’s Parish Church, Crumlin Road, Belfast, celebrated the 150th anniversary of its consecration with a Service of Thanksgiving on November 25 not long before my visit in March 2019.
It is described as a gothic style high Victorian Church, with an enormous central tower, designed by London architect William Slater, It and was intended to accommodate 800 worshippers.
It is built of Mourne granite and sandstone and cost £6,500 to build.
The five stained glass windows in the Sanctuary were presented by Mrs Blakiston-Houston and her son, Mr J Blakiston-Houston.
The first housing in the area sprang up in the 1860s to accommodate the workforce and their families who were mainly employed in the thriving linen industry on the Crumlin Road. Unfortunately, the closure of the mills in the 1960s hastened the physical and social decline and of the area.
The Crumlin Road is a main road in north-west Belfast, Northern Ireland. The road runs from north of Belfast City Centre for about four miles to the outskirts of the city. It also forms part of the longer A52 road which leads out of Belfast to the town of Crumlin (from Irish: Cromghlinn, meaning 'crooked glen'). The lower section of the road houses a number of historic buildings, including the city's former law courts and prison, whilst the road encompasses several large housing areas, including Ardoyne, Ballysillan and Ligoniel.
