The Ulster History Circle is a heritage organisation that administers

Blue Plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...

s for the area that encompasses the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

on the island of

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 ...

. It is a voluntary, not-for-profit organisation, placing commemorative plaques in public places in honour of people and locations that have contributed to all genres of history within the boundaries of the nine-county province of Ulster. Founded in the early 1980s, the group receives no government funding, unlike many similar organisations in the United Kingdom. The Circle also maintains the Dictionary of Ulster Biography.

History

The Ulster History Circle is a heritage organisation that administers Blue Plaques for the area that encompasses the province of Ulster. The organisation was conceived by James Hawthorne in the 1980s, who wanted to recognise people who had made a significant contribution to Ulster’s heritage. The exact date of the founding of the organisation is unknown, as it was lost when James Hawthorne died in 2006. The organisation is a voluntary, not-for-profit organisation, placing commemorative plaques in public places in honour of people and locations that have contributed to all genres of history within the boundaries of the nine-county province of Ulster. The group receives no government funding, unlike many similar organisations in the United Kingdom. The Circle also developed and maintains the Dictionary of Ulster Biography (DUB) and publishes a Guide to Blue Plaques. Doreen Corcoran served as chair of the Circle from 1998 to 2009. The first plaque placed was in honour of the artist William Conor, at his former studio on Stranmillis Road in Belfast.

Blue Plaques recipients in Ulster

Since the first plaque was formally unveiled over 150 individuals have been honoured, including: * Cecil Frances Alexander, hymn writer * Mabel Annesley, artist and wood engraver * Thomas Andrews, designer of RMS '' Titanic'' * Joe Bambrick, soccer player *

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish writer of novels, plays, short stories, and poems. Writing in both English and French, his literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal, and Tragicomedy, tra ...

, playwright * Samuel Black, pioneer cardiologist * Lilian Bland, pioneer aviator * Edward Bunting, folk music collector * Margaret Byers, educationalist * Daniel Cambridge, soldier and recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

* Joseph Campbell, poet * Joseph W. Carey, painter * Amy Carmichael, missionary and writer * Joyce Cary, novelist * Francis Rawdon Chesney, soldier and explorer * Margaret Clarke, artist * Edward Coey, mayor of

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 philanthropist * Mabel Calhoun, photographer, teacher and archaeologist * William Conor, artist * Kathleen Coyle, writer *

James Humbert Craig James Humbert Craig (12 July 1877 in Belfast – 12 June 1944) was an Irish painter.Craig was born in Belfast to Alexander Craig, a tea merchant, and a Swiss mother, Marie Metzenen, from a family with a painting tradition. He was raised in ...

, artist * James Bell Crichton, soldier and recipient of the

* William Crolly, Archbishop of Armagh * James Deeny, public health pioneer * Edmund De Wind, soldier and recipient of the

* George Dickson, rose grower * William Steel Dickson, United Irishman * John Dill, soldier * Gerard Dillon, artist * James Dilworth, New Zealand farmer, investor, speculator and philanthropist * William Drennan, physician and radical *

John Boyd Dunlop John Boyd Dunlop (5 February 1840 – 23 October 1921) was a Scottish people, Scottish inventor and veterinary surgeon who spent most of his career in Ireland. Familiar with making Natural rubber, rubber devices, he invented the first practica ...

, tyre inventor * Timothy Eaton, businessman * William John English, soldier and recipient of the

* E. Estyn Evans, geographer * Harry Ferguson, inventor * Vere Henry Lewis Foster, educationalist * William Gibson, goldsmith and philanthropist * Sarah Grand, novelist and suffragette * W. A. Green, photographer * Paul Henry, artist * Robert Mitchell Henry, academic * John Hewitt, poet * Chaim Herzog, sixth

President of Israel The president of the State of Israel (, or ) is the head of state of Israel. The president is mostly, though not entirely, ceremonial; actual executive power is vested in the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet led by the Prime Minister of Israel, pr ...

*The

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

Community * Barney Hughes, master baker and philanthropist *

Brian Desmond Hurst Brian Desmond Hurst (12 February 1895 – 26 September 1986) was an Irish people, Irish film director. With over thirty films in his filmography, Hurst was hailed as Northern Ireland's best film director by BBC film critic Mike Catto.Scree ...

, film director * Francis Hutcheson, philosopher and teacher * Alexander Irvine, writer * Otto Jaffe, Lord Mayor of Belfast 1899 and 1904 and philanthropist * James Johnston, tenor * Samuel Kelly, coal importer and philanthropist * Kellys Cellars, meeting place 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 ...

* John King, explorer * Charles Lanyon, architect * Philip Larkin, poet * John Lavery, painter *

Charles Lever Charles James Lever (31 August 1806 – 1 June 1872) was an Irish novelist and raconteur, whose novels, according to Anthony Trollope, were just like his conversation. Biography Early life Lever was born in Amiens Street, Dublin, the secon ...

, novelist *

C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalen ...

, author * Charles Davis Lucas, naval officer and first recipient of the

* John Luke, artist * Robert Wilson Lynd, writer * Robert Shipboy MacAdam, antiquarian and Gaelic scholar * Aodh Mac Aingil, scholar, poet and bishop * George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney, diplomat * Thomas McCabe and William Putnam McCabe,

* Luke Livingston Macassey, civil engineer and barrister * Samuel McCaughey, sheep farmer and politician * John Macoun, explorer and naturalist * Henry Joy McCracken, United Irishman * Mary Ann McCracken, social reformer * James MacCullagh, mathematician and physicist * Charles McKimm, first General Superinendant of Parks for the City of Belfast * Michael McLaverty, writer * Louis MacNeice, poet * Martha Magee, benefactor * James Joseph Magennis, submariner and recipient of the

Guglielmo Marconi Guglielmo Giovanni Maria Marconi, 1st Marquess of Marconi ( ; ; 25 April 1874 – 20 July 1937) was an Italian electrical engineer, inventor, and politician known for his creation of a practical radio wave-based Wireless telegraphy, wireless tel ...

, radio pioneer * W. F. Marshall, preacher and poet * Colin Middleton, artist * Rinty Monaghan, World Champion boxer * James Murray, inventor of milk of magnesia * Andrew Nicholl, painter * Sister Nivedita (Margaret Elizabeth Noble), writer and Indian nationalist * Cathal O'Byrne, singer, poet and writer * Stewart Parker, playwright * H. B. Phillips, impresario * Sir Henry Pottinger, 1st Baronet, first

Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the United Kingdom, British The Crown, Crown in British Hong Kong, Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council of Hong Kong, Executiv ...

* Robert Lloyd Praeger, naturalist and historian * Rosamond Praeger, sculptor * Robert Quigg, soldier and recipient of the

* William Ritchie, pioneer shipbuilder *

Robert the Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert led Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against Kingdom of Eng ...

, King of the Scots *

Paul Rodgers Paul Bernard Rodgers (born 17 December 1949) is an English-Canadian singer. He was the lead vocalist of numerous successful rock bands, including Free (band), Free, Bad Company, The Firm (rock band), the Firm and The Law (English band), the L ...

, shipbuilder * Richard Rowley, poet * George William Russell, writer, poet and artist * George Shiels, playwright * Sir Robert Staples, 12th Baronet, artist * George Vesey Stewart, pioneer

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

settler * Robert Sullivan, educationalist *

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

, cleric and writer *

Hugh Thomson Hugh Thomson (1 June 18607 May 1920) was an Irish Illustration, illustrator. He is best known for his pen-and-ink illustrations of works by authors such as Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and J. M. Barrie. Thomson inaugurated the ''Cranford Sch ...

, illustrator *

William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin (26 June 182417 December 1907), was a British mathematician, Mathematical physics, mathematical physicist and engineer. Born in Belfast, he was the Professor of Natural Philosophy (Glasgow), professor of Natur ...

, scientist *

Anthony Trollope Anthony Trollope ( ; 24 April 1815 – 6 December 1882) was an English novelist and civil servant of the Victorian era. Among the best-known of his 47 novels are two series of six novels each collectively known as the ''Chronicles of Barsetshire ...

, novelist * Helen Waddell, poet and writer * Sir Richard Wallace, 1st Baronet, philanthropist and art collector * Ernest Walton, physicist and Nobel Laureate * George Stuart White, soldier and recipient of the

* William Whitla, physician and politician *

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

, playwright and poet * Guy Wilson, daffodil breeder * John Butler Yeats, artist and writer * James Young, actor and comedian * Annie Russell Maunder, astronomer * Dorothy Parke, musician and composer

References

External links

Ulster History Circle plaques
recorded on openplaques.org {{coord missing, Ireland Non-profit organisations based in Northern Ireland Cultural history of Northern Ireland * Ulster Blue plaques 1980s establishments in Northern Ireland