Lisburn

Lisburn (from the Irish: Lios na gCearrbhach meaning "fort of the gamblers" and from the English: burn meaning "fire") is a city split between County Antrim & County Down, Northern Ireland. The River Lagan denotes the county boundary. Lisburn had a population of 71,465 people in the 2001 Census. Unlike most cities which are urban, Lisburn city is surrounded by a primarily rural farming area, with the city itself being relatively small. The council area also includes Moira, Glenavy, Dunmurry, Drumbo as well as Lisburn itself, where the administrative headquarters lie.^[1]

The ’Lis’ element in Lisburn derives from Lisnagarvy, a townland incorporated in the modern city and whose name is from the Irish: Lios na gCearrbhach, meaning fort of the gamers or gamblers. In the hard years after the devastating fire of 1641, in which the town was totally destroyed, it became known locally as 'Lisburn', a label which has since become the accepted name of the settlement.

Lisburn is also known as the birthplace of the Irish linen industry, which was established in 1698 by Louis Crommelin and other Huguenots. An exhibition about the Irish linen industry is now housed in the Irish Linen Centre, which can be found in the town’s old Market House in Market Square.

The borough was made a city in 2002 (along with Newry) as part of Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee celebrations. The city is a popular shopping centre, with a wide range of retail outlets both in the Lisburn town centre and in the out-of-town Sprucefield and Sprucefield Park centres. Also in the town centre is the Irish linen centre and Lisburn Museum, which is free to enter and contains displays about the history of the linen industry (which was a key industry in the history of Ulster).^[2]

1 Administration
2 History
- 2.1 The Troubles
3 People
4 Demographics
5 MLA's
6 MP
7 Education
8 Sport
9 References
10 See also
11 External links

[edit] Administration

Lisburn is home to many important political, civil and military bodies with associated infrastructure. Including the headquarters of Down Lisburn Trust, one of the largest of Northern Ireland's Health and Social Services trusts, Thiepval Barracks, the headquarters of the British Army in Northern Ireland, and the Northern Ireland Fire Brigade headquarters are also located in the town.

In elections for the Westminster Parliament it is located within Lagan Valley constituency and West Belfast.

[edit] History

Negotiations preceding the American War of Independence between Ben Franklin and Lord Hillsborough took place at the parish of Hillsborough in Lisburn.

[edit] The Troubles

For more information see The Troubles in Lisburn, which includes a list of incidents in Lisburn during the Troubles resulting in two or more fatalities.

[edit] People

Sir Richard Wallace made quite an impact on Lisburn. His bequests include the Wallace Park and Wallace High School. In 1872 he donated drinking fountains, known as Wallace fountains, two of which can still be seen near the cricket pitch in Wallace Park, another in front of Lisburn Linen Museum in Bow Street and another in Castle Gardens. Wallace was created baronet in 1871 and was Member of Parliament for Lisburn from 1873 to 1885.

[edit] Demographics

Lisburn Urban Area is within Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area (BMUA)and is classified as a Large Town by the NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (ie with population between 18,000 and 75,000 people). On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 71,465 people living in Lisburn. Of these:

25.4% were aged under 16 years and 15.6% were aged 60 and over
52.1% were female and 47.9% were male
54.2% were from a Protestant background and 41.7% were from a Catholic background
4.0% of people aged 16-74 were unemployed.^[3]

[edit] MLA's

The MLAs elected to serve in Lisburn and in the Lagan Valley constituency are:

Jeffery Donaldson DUP Paul Butler SF Trevor Lunn Alliance Basil McCrea UUP Jonathon Craig DUP Edwin Poots DUP

[edit] MP

The current MP is Jeffery Donaldson (DUP)

[edit] Education

Central Primary School
Tonagh Primary School
Largymore Primary School
St Aloysius Primary School
Killowen Primary School
Ballymacash Primary School
Brownlee Primary School
Forthill Primary School
Harmony Hill Primary School
St Joseph's Primary School

Old Warren Primary School
Knockmore Primary School
Pond Park Primary School
Friends School
Lisnagarvey High School
Wallace High School
Forthill College Lisburn
Laurelhill Community College
St Patricks High School
Lisburn Institute

[edit] Sport

Lisburn Distillery is a Northern Ireland football club playing in the Irish Premier League. The club, founded in 1879, originated in West Belfast, where it was based at Distillery Street off the Grosvenor Road until 1971. After sharing Skegoneill Avenue (Brantwood FC) and Seaview (Crusaders FC) for some years the club again moved in 1980 to New Grosvenor Stadium, Ballyskeagh, near Dunmurry on the outskirts of the city. The club was known as 'Distillery' until 1999, when it changed its name to 'Lisburn Distillery' in an attempt to associate itself more closely with its adopted borough of Lisburn. Club colour is white. The current manager is Paul Kirk.