John Irving was the proprietor of the Magheramorne

Magheramorne

Magheramorne is a hamlet in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is about 5 miles south of Larne on the shores of Larne Lough. It had a population of 75 people in the 2001 Census. It is within the Larne Borough Council area....

 estate in County Antrim

County Antrim

County Antrim is one of six counties that form Northern Ireland, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 2,844 km², with a population of approximately 616,000...

 in the 19th century and was an improving landlord who encouraged tenants to improve the land through provision of lime for fertilisation, and incentives for those who drained and erected ditches. He also built a row of labourer's cottages which had two acres attached to each to encourage self-sufficiency

Self-sufficiency

Self-sufficiency refers to the state of not requiring any outside aid, support, or interaction, for survival; it is therefore a type of personal or collective autonomy...

. Irving majored in developing what was then known as Ballylig Lime Works, building quays and a railway, and expanding the production. In 1834 130,000 barrels of lime were exported at 10d per barrel, amounting to over £5400. 300 tons of limestone

Limestone

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 was exported, valued at £22 and 624 tons of flint

Flint

Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...

 amounting to a value of £140. Ships traded with County Down

County Down

-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...

, the Clyde

River Clyde

The River Clyde is a major river in Scotland. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow, it was an important river for shipbuilding and trade in the British Empire....

, Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

, Kintyre

Kintyre

Kintyre is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The region stretches approximately 30 miles , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south, to East Loch Tarbert in the north...

 and other areas. Flints from Magheramorne quarries were used in the Staffordshire Potteries

Staffordshire Potteries

The Staffordshire Potteries is a generic term for the industrial area encompassing the six towns that now make up Stoke on Trent in Staffordshire, England....

. Irving died in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in November 1845. His agent at Magheramorne was Thomas Maxwell, who lived at Ballylig House.

The lime works which were established by Irving became the British Portland Cement Company Plant, and subsequently Blue Circle. The cement plant closed at Magheramorne some years ago, but there are plans to develop major adventure park

Adventure park

While a ropes course is often a challenging outdoor personal development and team-building activity, an Adventure Park or “European-Style” Adventure Park has a more recreational purpose....

activities at the quarry workings at Magheramorne.