Aghalee

Aghalee (from the Irish: Acheli meaning "field of the calves") is a small village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Although sometimes regarded as being part of Craigavon in County Armagh (with a BT67 postcode), the village is in County Antrim. It is situated three miles from the south-east corner of Lough Neagh on the main road between Lurgan and Antrim and about 13 kilometres to the west of Lisburn. The village is attractively placed on the steep, wooded slopes of Friary Glen, and is situated beside the now disused Lagan Navigational Canal. In the 2001 Census, Aghalee had a population of 774 people.

Aghalee has a wide range of facilities including several places of worship, a community hall and several shops including a post office. The village contains a vocational training centre, a nursing home, telephone exchange, day nursery, doctor’s surgery and chemist. An Ulsterbus service runs to and from Aghalee to Lisburn and Belfast.

1 History
2 2001 Census
3 References
4 External links
5 See also

[edit] History

Much of the early development of Aghalee was due to its strategic location beside the Lagan Navigational Canal which opened at the end of the 18th century. The village became a distribution centre for the surrounding area and developed as an important lock station on the Lagan Navigation, as it was one of the last sizeable settlements before the canal entered Lough Neagh. While the canal operated, trade continued on a significant scale. When the canal finally ceased to operate in 1954, the area began to decline in commercial importance. The population of the settlement decreased considerably in the latter part of the 19th century and the first part of the 20th century.

The village retains many of the 18th century structures and buildings belonging to the canal. From the 1970s Aghalee developed as a commuter area for Belfast and Craigavon and this was accompanied by significant population growth. In recent times, development has occurred on the lands to the west of the village core.

Aghalee is remembered in the orange song, 'The Aghalee Heroes'

[edit] 2001 Census

Aghalee is classified as a Small Village or Hamlet by the NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (ie with population between 500 and 1,000 people). On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 774 people living in Aghalee. Of these:

26.0% were aged under 16 years and 8.8% were aged 60 and over
51.2% of the population were male and 48.8% were female
10.6% were from a Catholic background and 85.0% were from a Protestant background
2.7% of people aged 16-74 were unemployed

For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service