Bellaghy Bawn

Bellaghy Bawn stands in the village of Bellaghy in Mid Ulster. It is a fortified house built on basalt formed from Cretaceous-era lava. The bawn was constructed where an Early Christian ringfort once stood, though its builders were likely unaware of this. Work began around 1614 under John Rowley and continued after his death by Baptist Jones. The original structure burned during the 1641 Irish Rebellion and was rebuilt in 1643. It later became a museum in 1996. The bawn is worth visiting for its layered history and connections to key figures. John Rowley and Baptist Jones were granted land by the Vintners Company during the Plantation of Ulster. The bawn was garrisoned by 76 men under Jones and later owned by Henry Conway, who inherited debts and a troubled past. Excavations have uncovered stone footings, artefacts from the 17th and 18th centuries, and evidence of an orchard and gravel pathway. The site also features a bronze sculpture titled *Turf Man* by David Annand, inspired by Seamus Heaney’s poem *Digging*. Visitors find a square-shaped bawn with two large towers and two-story blocks. The modern structure incorporates the original south-east flanker tower and a brick tower in the south-west. Inside, the museum displays poem manuscripts and a film about Seamus Heaney’s local influences. Outside, fields behind the building show traces of 18th-century features uncovered by excavations. The bawn’s walls and towers stand as reminders of its past roles, from defence to a dispensary and finally a community hub.