Ballymoney ( , meaning 'townland of the moor') is a town and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, County Antrim, Antrim, ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, located within the historic Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the c ...

, Northern Ireland. It is within the

Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council is a local authority in Northern Ireland that was established on 1 April 2015. It covers most of the northern coast of Northern Ireland and replaced Ballymoney Borough Council, Coleraine Borough Council, ...

area. The civil parish of Ballymoney is situated in the historic baronies of

Dunluce Upper Dunluce Upper is a barony in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is bordered by six other baronies: Dunluce Lower to the north; Cary to the north-east; North East Liberties of Coleraine to the north-west; Coleraine to the west; Kilconway to th ...

and

Kilconway Kilconway () is a barony in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is bordered by six other baronies: Dunluce Upper to the north; Glenarm Lower to the east; Antrim Lower to the south-east; Toome Lower to the south; Loughinsholin to the south-wes ...

, as well as the barony of

North East Liberties of Coleraine The North East Liberties of Coleraine (named after Coleraine town) is a barony in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It borders the north-eastern coastline of County Londonderry and is bordered by three other baronies: Coleraine to the west an ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

. It had a population of 11,048 people at the 2021 census. Ballymoney is located on the

main road A "main road" may refer to: * A major road in a town or village, or in a country area. * A highway * A trunk road, especially in British English Main Road may refer to: * Main Road, Hobart, Australia * Main Road, Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh * Main ...

between

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, No ...

and

Ballymena Ballymena ( ; from , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 31,205 people at the 2021 United Kingdom census, making it the List of localities in Northern Ireland by population, seven ...

, with good road and rail connections to the main cities in Northern Ireland,

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

and

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

. The Ballymoney area has the highest

life expectancy Human life expectancy is a statistical measure of the estimate of the average remaining years of life at a given age. The most commonly used measure is ''life expectancy at birth'' (LEB, or in demographic notation ''e''0, where '' ...

of any area in Northern Ireland, with the average male life expectancy at birth being 79.9 years and 83.8 years for females in years between 2010 and 2012. Conversely, it was revealed in 2013 that Ballymoney residents are more likely to die from heart disease than anywhere else in Northern Ireland. The town hosts the Ballymoney Drama Festival, the oldest drama festival in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, which was founded in 1933. The town also hosts the Ballymoney Show, which is one of the oldest agricultural shows in Northern Ireland and was founded in 1902.

History

16th and 17th century

In 1556, an account of an English expedition against the MacDonnells, a sept of the Scottish

Clan Donald Clan Donald, also known as Clan MacDonald or Clan McDonald ( ), is a Highland Scottish clan and one of the largest Scottish clans. Historically the chiefs of the Clan Donald held the title of Lord of the Isles until 1493 and two of those chiefs a ...

that lorded over a wide expanse of north and east Antrim known as the Route and Glynns, records "a bishop's house, which was with a castle and a church joined together in one, called Ballymonyn". Destroyed in the

Irish Rebellion of 1641 The Irish Rebellion of 1641 was an uprising in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, initiated on 23 October 1641 by Catholic gentry and military officers. Their demands included an end to anti-Catholic discrimination, greater Irish self-governance, and ...

, no vestige of the bishop's house or castle remains, but a tower of a church built in 1637 by Sir Randall MacDonnell survives and is the town's oldest structure. In the wake of the devastation caused by the Tudor Conquest of Ulster, Sir Randall had invited settlers from

lowland Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland. Definitions Upland and lowland are portions of a ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. Unlike the MacDonnells and the native Irish, the majority of these were not

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, but neither did they recognise the

episcopacy A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

the reformed church The Reformed Church is a historic Reformed church at 405 N. Main Street in Herkimer, Herkimer County, New York. It was built in 1835 and is a two-story, painted brick structure with a stone rear wing. It features a staged spire in the Federa ...

established under the

British Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

. Conscious of their disabilities both as "dissenters" from the established church and as tenants at will, after two/three generations these Scottish

Presbyterians Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

began to leave in search of opportunity elsewhere.

18th century

In summer 1718, people from Ballymoney and the surrounding area waved goodbye to five ships carrying Presbyterian ministers and their congregations across the Atlantic to start new lives in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. This was among the early wave of departures that, in the course of the coming decades, was to carry tens of thousands of "Scots-Irish" to the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

. From 1778, inspired by the revolt of their kinsmen in the America colonies, the disaffection among the people of the town and district took a more radical turn, first in the drilling and political conventions of the Volunteer militia, and then from 1795 in the

Society of United Irishmen The Society of United Irishmen was a sworn association, formed in the wake of the French Revolution, to secure Representative democracy, representative government in Ireland. Despairing of constitutional reform, and in defiance both of British ...

. The "test" or pledge of the Society "to form a Brotherhood of affection amongst Irishmen of every religious persuasion" so as to secure an "equal representation of all the people in Ireland", was administered by leading residents of the town, among them a doctor, a schoolmaster and two attorneys. When in June 1798, having despaired of parliamentary reform, the Society called for insurrection, men assembled on Dungobery Hill, parading with guns, pikes, pitchforks and scythes tied upon sticks. Although they quickly dispersed on news of the defeat of the larger rebel host at Antrim town, reprisals were taken. Government troops burned the town, and many of the rebels were either hanged or "sent for transportation" (to the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

or to the

penal colony A penal colony or exile colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general population by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory. Although the term can be used to refer ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

). The young licentiate minister, Richard Caldwell, who had had command of the rebels found exile in the United States, there to die in

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

in a march on

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

19th century

In 1837, Lewis's ''Topographical Dictionary of Ireland,'' describes Ballymoney as "a market-town and post-town" containing 2,222 inhabitants (11,579 in the broader

) with a long established

linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen is very strong and absorbent, and it dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. Lin ...

market chiefly supplying the London market, and with "a very extensive trade ... in grain, butter, pork, and general provisions". Transport was largely via the Bann. By 1860, the town was connected to both

and Derry by rail. At the height of the Great Famine in 1847, entire families were being admitted to the Ballymoney

Workhouse In Britain and Ireland, a workhouse (, lit. "poor-house") was a total institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. In Scotland, they were usually known as Scottish poorhouse, poorh ...

. At one point it became vastly overcrowded with 870 inmates. The destitute families were separated, men, women and children being subject to demanding work regimes. By the end of the century the number of people seeking relief had declined and the workhouse closed in 1918. It later became the site of the Route Hospital. In the decades following the famine, the issue of

tenant right Tenant-right is a term in the common law system expressing the right to compensation which a tenant has, either by custom or by law, against his landlord for increment at the termination of his tenancy. In England, it was governed for most part b ...

challenged large landowners who as "loyalists" and "unionists" believed they might count on the popular vote. Inspired by the electoral successes of James MacKnight and

Samuel MacCurdy Greer Samuel MacCurdy Greer (1810–1880), was an Irish politician who, in Ulster championed Presbyterian representation and tenant rights. He was a founder member of the Ulster Tenant Right Association and of the all-Ireland Tenant Right League. In ...

in neighboring County Londonderry, in 1869 the Rev.

James Armour James Brown Armour (1841–1928), usually known as J. B. Armour, was an Irish Presbyterian minister who sought to rally Protestantism in Ireland, Protestant opinion in the north of Ireland in support of Tenant-tenant right and against landlordism, ...

and others in Ballymoney formed the Route Tenants Defence Association. In 1874, the association organised a major North-South National Tenants Rights conference in Belfast which called for loans to facilitate tenant purchase of land and for breaking the landlord monopoly on local government.

20th century

After the turn of the century there was local support for the

Independent Orange Order The Independent Loyal Orange Institution is an offshoot of the Orange Institution, a Protestant fraternal organisation based in Northern Ireland. Initially pro-labour and supportive of tenant rights and land reform, over time it moved to a mo ...

, promoted by its first Imperial Grand Master, Lindsay Crawford (an admirer of the

United Irishmen The Society of United Irishmen was a sworn association, formed in the wake of the French Revolution, to secure Representative democracy, representative government in Ireland. Despairing of constitutional reform, and in defiance both of British ...

), as an expression of "progressive Protestantism". In 1906, the IOO supported the election of Liberal, R. G. Glendinning due largely to his support for compulsory land purchase. By the time of the

Home Rule Crisis The Home Rule Crisis was a political and military crisis in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that followed the introduction of the Government of Ireland Act 1914, Third Home Rule Bill in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom ...

of 1912–14, the land question had resolved largely in the tenants' favour, and official unionism reasserted itself. A meeting in Ballymoney Town Hall in October 1913 organised by Armour and Ballymena's

Jack White John Anthony White (; born July 9, 1975) is an American musician who achieved international fame as the guitarist and lead singer of the rock duo the White Stripes. As the White Stripes disbanded, he sought success with his solo career, subse ...

, and with

Sir Roger Casement Roger David Casement (; 1 September 1864 – 3 August 1916), known as Sir Roger Casement, CMG, between 1911 and 1916, was a diplomat and Irish nationalist executed by the United Kingdom for treason during World War I. He worked for the Britis ...

and

Alice Stopford Green Alice Stopford Green (30 May 1847 – 28 May 1929) was an Irish historian, nationalist, and member of the first Seanad Éireann. Early life She was born Alice Sophia Amelia Stopford in Kells, County Meath. Her father Edward Adderley Stopford ...

on the platform, disputed the claim of

Edward Carson Edward Henry Carson, Baron Carson, Privy Council (United Kingdom), PC, Privy Council of Ireland, PC (Ire), King's Counsel, KC (9 February 1854 – 22 October 1935), from 1900 to 1921 known as Sir Edward Carson, was an Irish unionist politician ...

's Unionists to speak for northern Protestants. Local historian Alex Blair notes, "the meeting put Ballymoney into the press headlines across the United Kingdom. All the big London papers had a representative in the Town Hall and ‘ The London Times’ carried an editorial as well as a report". But while the dissident meeting had filled the hall, in November an anti-Home Rule meeting addressed by Carson's lieutenant Sir James Craig had the crowd spilling out of the hall into the surrounding streets. Broadly in line with its three-quarters Protestant majority, Ballymoney remained a Unionist town. From 1921 its Antrim, and later Bannside, constituencies returned Ulster Unionists to the

Northern Ireland Parliament The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended because of its inability to restore or ...

virtually unopposed. This ended only in February 1969, when standing as a Protestant Unionist, the Rev. Ian Paisley came within a few percentage points of unseating the

Prime Minister of Northern Ireland The prime minister of Northern Ireland was the head of the Government of Northern Ireland (1921–1972), Government of Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920; however, the L ...

, Captain Terence O'Neill. This was at the onset of the Northern Irish Troubles, in the course of which Ballymoney and its immediate surroundings witnessed 14 conflict-related deaths. Seven people were killed by various

loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

groups, four by the Irish Republican Army (IRA), and three by the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. The most notorious incident occurred at the height of the Drumcree protests, three months after the 1998 "Good Friday" Agreement under which both republican and

paramilitaries A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...

committed to permanent ceasefires. The

Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalism, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group based in Northern Ireland. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former Royal Ulster Rifles soldier from North ...

petrol bombed a house in a predominantly Protestant area of the town killing three Catholic children, the Quinn brothers. The last major flax-spinning operation in the area, the Balnamore Mill, made its final shipment of linen (to Germany) and closed its doors in 1959. The same year, saw the camera manufacturer K.G. Corfield moved from

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

to Ballymoney, becoming the only camera manufacturers on the island of Ireland. But this surprise addition to Ballymoney's shrinking industrial base failed in the face of Japanese and German competition. It ceased production in 1971. A further blow to the local economy was delivered in 1988 by a fire that destroyed the Lovell and Christmas pig processing factory that had employed more than 400 people and processed about 40% of Northern Ireland's pork.

21st century

In the 21st century, Ballymoney recovered an ability to attract industrial investment. Examples included a 2015 €6.8 million expansion in the operations of McAuley Engineering, and the announcement in June 2022 of a £9 million expansion of the metal fabricator facility of the U.S. machinery giant

Terex Terex Corporation is an American company and worldwide manufacturer of materials processing machinery, waste and recycling equipment, mobile elevating work platforms, and equipment for the electric utility industry. Terex does business in the ...

. In the 30 years between the 1981 census and the 2011 census, the population of the town almost doubled from 5,679 to 10,393 people. In the broader-than-the-town census area, the population rose from 26,865 in 2001 to 32,505 in 2020.

Politics

Ballymoney district is part of the

. In 2023, the residents elected 2

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

, 2

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

, 1

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded as the Ulster Unionist Council in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it l ...

, 1

Traditional Unionist Voice The Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. In common with all other Northern Irish unionist parties, the TUV's political programme has as its '' sine qua non'' the preservation of Northern Ireland's pl ...

and 1 Alliance Party councillors. It is within the North Antrim constituency which in 2019 returned

Ian Paisley Jr Ian Richard Kyle Paisley Jr (born 12 December 1966) is a Northern Irish businessman and former unionist politician. A member of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), he served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Antrim from 2010 to 2024, ...

, Democratic Unionist Party, to

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

, and in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

returned to the

Northern Ireland Assembly The Northern Ireland Assembly (; ), often referred to by the metonym ''Stormont'', is the devolved unicameral legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliam ...

one Ulster Unionist, one Democratic Unionist, one Traditional Unionist Voice, one Sinn Féin and one Alliance member.

Demographics

2021 census

On census day (21 March 2021) there were 11,048 people living in the town of Ballymoney. Of these: * 71.9% belong to or were brought up in a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' faith and 16% belong to or were brought up in the Catholic Christian faith. * 68.9% indicated that they had a British national identity, 37.8% had a Northern Irish national identity and 7.3% had an Irish national identity (respondents could indicate more than one national identity).

2011 census

At the time of the 2011 census, 27 March 2011, there were 10,402 people living in the town of Ballymoney (in 4,354 households), an increase of 15.3% on the 2001 census population of 9,021. Of these: * 19.75% were aged under 16 years and 16.91% were aged 65 and over. * 52.84% of the usually resident population were female and 47.16% were male. * 76.23% belong to or were brought up in a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' faith and 17.17% belong to or were brought up in the Catholic Christian faith. * 73.34% indicated that they had a British national identity, 28.11% had a Northern Irish national identity and 6.78% had an Irish national identity (respondents could indicate more than one national identity). * 39 years was the average (median) age of the population. * 32.05% had some knowledge of Ulster-Scots and 4.01% had some knowledge of Irish (Gaelic).

Buildings of note

There are a number of buildings of historic note in Ballymoney's town centre. These include: * An old church tower, dating from 1637, which is the town's oldest surviving building. * The town clock and masonic hall, commissioned by Randal William MacDonnell, 6th Earl of Antrim in 1775. The hall was used as a market house, courthouse, town hall and school. *

Ballymoney Town Hall Ballymoney Town Hall is a municipal structure in the High Street, Ballymoney, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The structure, which incorporates a local history museum, is a Grade B1 listed building. History The first municipal building in Ball ...

, which was erected in 1866.

Education

Primary schools

*Ballymoney Primary School, also known as Ballymoney Model, is on North Road and has approximately 360 pupils. The school is within the Northern Eastern Education Library Board area. Historically, Ballymoney Primary has been a predominately

protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

school, but was scheduled to be integrated in September 2009 following a very narrow vote in favour of the idea. *Garryduff Primary School, for pupils aged 4–11, is located on the Garryduff road approximately 3 miles outside of Ballymoney. It has got a new extension with a new multi-purpose hall and a new classroom. *Landhead Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 5 to 11 years on the Kilraughts Road. * Leaney Primary School is located near Ballymoney High School on Intermediate Road approximately 1 mile from the town centre. The school, for children aged 4 to 11, is part of the Eco-Schools programme which aims to raise pupils awareness of sustainable development issues. *Lislagan Primary School is about three miles from Ballymoney in a rural location. It is a controlled school for girls and boys aged from 3 to 11 and is within the North Eastern Education and Library Board area. As of 2006, enrollment stood at 94. *St. Brigid's Primary School is located in Castle Street.

Secondary schools

* Ballymoney High School * Dalriada School * Our Lady of Lourdes High School, Ballymoney

College

Northern Regional College Northern Regional College (or NRC) is a third level educational institution in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The college has five campuses around the north-east of Northern Ireland (County Antrim and eastern County Londonderry): Ballymena ...

, Ballymoney campus

Sport

Association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

clubs in the area include Ballymoney United F.C. and Glebe Rangers F.C.

Transport

Ballymoney railway station Ballymoney railway station serves the town of Ballymoney in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. History Ballymoney station was opened by the Ballymena, Ballymoney, Coleraine and Portrush Junction Railway on 4 December 1855. The station was ...

opened on 4 December 1855, and was closed to goods traffic on 4 January 1965. The refurbished railway station was opened in May 1990. It was one terminus of the Ballycastle Railway, a

narrow gauge railway A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with Minimum railw ...

which ran 17 miles connecting Ballycastle to Ballymoney, on the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway (BNCR), later

Northern Counties Committee The Northern Counties Committee (NCC) was a railway that served the north-east of Ireland. It was built to Irish gauge () but later acquired a number of narrow gauge lines. It had its origins in the Belfast and Ballymena Railway which opened ...

(NCC), main line to

, and closed in July 1950.

Economy and media

Maine Soft Drinks Ltd Glaret Maine Soft Drinks Ltd. is a company based in Ballymoney, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, which sells soft drinks, cordials and aerated waters. During the early 21st-century recession, it remained in Ballymoney while several other companies ...

is based in the area. ''The Ballymoney Chronicle'' was established in 1844. It is the largest-selling weekly newspaper in the North Coast and the second largest weekly newspaper in Northern Ireland.

People

Arts and media

* Patrick Boyle (1905–1982), novelist. * George Shiels (1881–1949), Popular playwright of early 20th century. * James Young (1918–1974), comedian.

Politics

* J.B. Armour (1841–1928), cleric, educationalist and

Home Rule Home rule is the government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governan ...

activist. *

Thomas McKean Thomas McKean (; March 19, 1734June 24, 1817) was an American lawyer, politician, and Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father. During the American Revolution, he was a Delaware delegate to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, ...

(1734–1817), a prominent figure in the American Revolution, was the son of an emigrant from Ballymoney. * Sir William Moore (1864–1944), Unionist politician and judge. * William Robinson (1823–1912), Conservative Ontario politician. * John Pinkerton (1845–1908), Tenant righter and

Irish Parliamentary Party The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP; commonly called the Irish Party or the Home Rule Party) was formed in 1874 by Isaac Butt, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nati ...

MP. * John Robb (1932–2018), surgeon and member of

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

. * John Tennant (1777–1813) born at Roseyards near Ballymoney, leading United Irishman, killed in the service of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

's Irish Legion.

Sports

* Adrian Archibald (born 1969), motorcycle racer. * Stephen Carson (born 1980), former Northern Ireland Under-21 international footballer, who plays for Coleraine in the IFA Premiership. * Peter Chambers (born 1990), rower; Silver medal in the men's lightweight four at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. * Karen Corr (born 1969), pool and snooker player. * Stephen Dooley (born 1991), professional footballer. * Michael Dunlop (born 1989), motorcycle racer, Robert Dunlop's son *

Joey Dunlop William Joseph Dunlop (25 February 1952 – 2 July 2000) was a Northern Irish roadracing motorcyclist from Ballymoney, County Antrim. In 2015, he was voted Northern Ireland's greatest-ever sports star. Dunlop lies second on the list of all-ti ...

(1952–2000), known as the "King of the Road", won at the

Isle of Man TT The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event run on the Isle of Man in May and June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907 Isle of Man TT, 1907. The event begins on the UK Spring Bank Holiday at the e ...

a record 26 times. *

Robert Dunlop Stephen Robert Dunlop (25 November 1960 – 15 May 2008) was a Northern Irish motorcycle racer. He was the younger brother of fellow road racer Joey Dunlop and the father of racers William Dunlop and Michael Dunlop. Like his brother, Dunlop ...

(1960–2008), motorcycle racer, Joey Dunlop's brother * William Dunlop (1985–2018), motorcycle racer, Robert Dunlop's son * Mabel Harrison (1886–1972), golfer, died at Ballymoney * James Hopkins (1901–1943), professional footballer. * Gary Kelly (born 1989), Bowls World Cup Singles champion * Gareth McAuley (born 1992), sport shooter * Bridget McKeever (born 1983), a former Ireland women's field hockey international. *

Dino Morelli Dino Morelli (born June 6, 1973), is a former racing driver who competed sporadically in International Formula 3000, Formula 3000 between 1995 and 2001. Career Morelli began racing in karts in the late 1980s before joining Irish Formula Ford i ...

(born 1973), racing driver * Jim Platt (born 1952), former

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

and

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

. * Damien Quinn (born 1980), captain of the Antrim senior

hurling Hurling (, ') is an outdoor Team sport, team game of ancient Gaelic culture, Gaelic Irish origin, played by men and women. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goa ...

team. * Chris Turner (born 1987), former Northern Ireland Under-21 international footballer. * Davy Tweed (1959–2021), rugby player, Unionist politician

Town twinning

Benbrook, Texas Benbrook is a town located in the southwestern corner of Tarrant County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Fort Worth. As of the 2010 United States census, the population was 21,234, reflecting an increase of 1,026 from the 20,208 counted i ...

, United States * Douglas, Isle of Man *

Taguig Taguig (), officially the City of Taguig (), is the List of cities in the Philippines, fifth-most populous city in the Philippines situated on the eastern shores of Metro Manila, the national capital region. It is a center for culture, finance ...

, Philippineshttps://sp.taguig.gov.ph/sister-cities/ *

Vannes Vannes (; , , ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, French department of Morbihan, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany, northwestern mainland France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago. History Celtic ...

, France

References

External links

*
Visit BallymoneyCulture Northern Ireland website
(archived 2008) {{authority control Towns in County Antrim Civil parish of Ballymoney

History

16th and 17th century

18th century

19th century

20th century

21st century

Politics

Demographics

2021 census

2011 census

Buildings of note

Education

Primary schools

Secondary schools

College

Sport

Transport

Economy and media

People

Arts and media

Politics

Sports

Town twinning

See also

References

External links