Uncategorized

HMS Queen, leaving Malta (Robert Strickland Thomas, 1842) Edward Campbell was admitted into the Poor House aged 7, alongside his older brother, Alexander, in January 1840. After 3 years in the House, Alexander began an apprenticeship at the farm of William John Anderson. However, Edward’s life,  would not be one spent in the fields outside Belfast. Instead, he would find himself on the ships of the Royal Navy in the Caribbean and Mediterranean. Discharged from the Poor House on the 6th July 1848, Edward enrolled in the Royal Navy, before finding himself aboard HMS Crocodile, which had docked in [...]

The 'Children of the Poor House' series sets out to highlight the stories that we have uncovered from our archives. This week we are examining the mysterious death of one of our apprentices, William Lacey. William Lacey was admitted to the Poor House at the tender age of 7, in February 1803. He lived with us for six years until, in November 1809, he was apprenticed to Matthew Currie to learn the trade of weaver for a period of five years. However, three years after Lacey's apprenticeship began, on 25th April 1812, it was reported by the Poor House Orderly that [...]

On 13th April 1778 the American Revolution was brought to our shores. John Paul Jones, a Scots-American, sailed his privateer, the Ranger, into Belfast Lough. He attacked, and captured the British warship HMS Drake and made off with its cargo. He described the scene: “The sun was now a little more than an hour from setting, it was therefore time to begin…The action was warm, close and obstinate; it lasted for an hour and five minutes when the enemy called for quarters.” The British surrendered with 40 men dead, while only two Americans were killed. Fears for the safety of the [...]

In 1776 the original St Anne's Parish Church opened for worship, but burials in the town continued to take place at the old Corporation Church. However, the Corporation Graveyard was nearing capacity and so the innovative member of the Belfast Charitable Society decided to use a portion of its ground to create a new cemetery. Preparation began in 1795, with the 'New Burying Ground' opening its gates for burials in March 1797. Three years later, a clause in an Act of Parliament in 1800 stated “no dead bodies whatsoever shall be interred in the said old church-yard” and instead the “piece [...]