GARVAGHY

GARVAGHY, a parish, partly in the barony of LOWER, but chiefly in that of UPPER, IVEAGH, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 4 miles (S. E.) from Dromore, on the western branch of the river Lagan, and on the road from Banbridge to Downpatrick; containing 5036 inhabitants. This parish comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 10,256 ¾ statute acres, which with the exception of about 50 acres of bog and 26 of water, are wholly under tillage; the system of agriculture is greatly improved, and the lands are well fenced and generally in a high state of cultivation. There are some quarries of stone of good quality, which is extensively worked for building, repairing the roads, and other purposes.

The principal seats are Carniew, the residence of R. D. Macredy, Esq.; the Cottage, of W. Cosby, Esq.; Ballyely, of R. Maginnis, Esq.; Lion Hill, of H. Waugh, Esq.; the glebe-house, of the Rev. H. S. Hamilton, Esq.; and Waringsford, the property of J. Heron, Esq. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Dromore, and in the patronage of the Bishop; the rectory is partly appropriate to the see, and partly constitutes the corps of the prebend of Dromeragh in the cathedral of Dromore. The tithes amount to £514, of which £185 is payable to the bishop, £129 to the prebendary, and £200 to the vicar. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recommended the re-annexation of the rectorial tithes to the vicarage on the next avoidance of the prebend. The glebe-house, a handsome residence, was built by aid of a gift of £400, and a loan of £400, from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1820; the glebe comprises 74 acres. The church, a small edifice in the Grecian style, built in 1699, was thoroughly repaired in 1780, when the chancel was taken down.

In the R. C. divisions the parish forms part of the union or district of Dromore; the chapel at Ballineybeg is a small edifice, erected in 1822. There are places of worship for Presbyterians in connection with the Seceding Synod (of the first class), and Antiburghers. The parochial school is on the glebe, near the church; at Carniew is a school, with a residence for the master attached, to which the Rev. C. Hamilton, in 1814, gave an acre of land; there are also a national and five other public schools. About 250 children are taught in four private schools, and there are six Sunday schools. At Ballineybeg, and also at Knockgorman, are some remains of cromlechs.