Sandy Row
Encyclopedia
Sandy Row is a Protestant working-class community in south Belfast
, Northern Ireland
. It has a population of about 3,000. It is a staunchly loyalist
area of Belfast
, being a traditional heartland for affiliation with the paramilitary Ulster Defence Association
(UDA) and the Orange Order.
. The road runs south from the Boyne Bridge (formerly the Saltwater Bridge) over the old Dublin railway line into Great Victoria Street
station, then crosses the Donegall Road
and on to the bottom of the Lisburn Road
. At one end of the road was the famous Murray's tobacco factory, which first opened in 1810, while at the other is a large Orange
hall.
estuary. For over two thousand years, the road along the sandbank was the principal thoroughfare leading south from Carrickfergus
.
In the 19th century Sandy Row became a bustling shopping district, and by the turn of the 20th-century, there were a total of 127 shops and merchants based in the road. It continued to draw shoppers from all over Belfast until the outbreak of the Troubles
in the late 1960s. The rows of 19th-century terraced houses in the streets branching off Sandy Row have been demolished and replaced with modern housing. Six of the houses which formerly lined Rowland Street have been rebuilt in the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum.
It is a traditionally Protestant, close-knit loyalist
community, noted for its elaborate Orange Order parades on the Twelfth
, with over 40 Arches erected in its streets and a marching band of teenaged girls known as the "Sandy Row Girl's Band". In addition to the arches spanning the road, buildings and homes are decorated with flags, bunting and banners. The first Orange Arch was erected by Frank Reynolds in about 1921. In 1690, on his way south to fight at the Battle of the Boyne
, King William III of England
and his troops travelled along Sandy Row. Tradition holds that part of his army camped on the ground where the Orange Hall now stands. The Hall was opened in June 1910 by Lady Henderson, wife of former Lord Mayor of Belfast
, James Henderson. By 1908, there were 34 Orange Lodges in the district. In the 19th and 20th-centuries, there was much sectarian fighting and rioting between Sandy Row Protestants and Catholics from Pound Loney, in the Lower Falls Road
.
In the Belfast Blitz
, the Luftwaffe
dropped a bomb in Blythe Street, damaging a terrace of houses.
The Sandy Row redevelopment association which was founded in 1970, was one of the first loyalist community groups to open an advice centre. In 1996, the Sandy Row Community Forum was established. It acts as an umbrella organisation for all the community groups in the area.
, the area had a strong Ulster Defence Association
(UDA) presence. Sandy Row is part of the UDA South Belfast Brigade, commanded for many years by the late John McMichael
and currently by Jackie McDonald
.
In December 1972, senior UDA member Ernie Elliott
was shot dead outside a Sandy Row club by a fellow UDA man after a drunken brawl. On 7 February 1973, Brian Douglas, a Protestant fireman from Sailortown
was shot to death by the UDA whilst fighting a fire caused by street disturbances in Bradbury Place. Two Protestant civilian men were killed on 30 March 1974 in a no-warning bomb attack carried out by an unknown republican
paramilitary group against the Crescent Bar. On 30 January 1976, the Provisional IRA
exploded a car bomb
outside the Klondyke Bar on the corner of McAdam Street. John Smiley, a middle-aged Protestant civilian was killed outright in the blast. Many people inside the pub suffered serious injuries including a barmaid who lost an eye. Less than two years before the attack, the Klondyke Bar was the subject of a photographic essay by Bill Kirk in a series of photographs taken in Sandy Row. The Klondyke had been built in 1872.
In the same year of the Klondyke bombing, an 18-year-old Catholic girl had her throat slit behind a Sandy Row pub by loyalist paramilitaries after she had been discovered drinking inside with Protestant friends. Sandy Row UDA members also launched a series of attacks on nearby Durham Street, a mainly Catholic area between Sandy Row and the Falls Road, in the early 1970s with four Catholics killed in the area, including 16 year old Bernard McErlain, in late March-April 1973.
The large UDA/Ulster Freedom Fighters mural is one of many loyalist murals found in Sandy Row; it can be seen from the northern end of the street. The mural is supposed to mirror the Republican mural in Derry. Sandy Row features a loyalist souvenir shop which sells UDA and Ulster Volunteer Force
(UVF) paraphernalia.
In October 2011, a bomb was discovered on a patch of ground at Bradbury Place, which caused a security alert resulting in the evacuation of homes, bars, and businesses in the area. Army bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion on the device.
was founded in Sandy Row in March 1886 by workers from the Ulster Spinning Company's Linfield Mill. Originally named the Linfield Athletic Club, its playing ground, "the Meadow", was situated behind the mill. Linfield's first captain was Sam "Thaw" Torrans.
Celebrated snooker champion Alex "Hurricane" Higgins
was a native of Sandy Row. He first started playing at the age of 11 in the Jampot club.
" on his album Astral Weeks
, Van Morrison
sings:
"Then you know you gotta go
On the train from Dublin up to Sandy Row"
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. It has a population of about 3,000. It is a staunchly loyalist
Loyalist
In general, a loyalist is someone who maintains loyalty to an established government, political party, or sovereign, especially during war or revolutionary change. In modern English usage, the most common application is to loyalty to the British Crown....
area of Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, being a traditional heartland for affiliation with the paramilitary Ulster Defence Association
Ulster Defence Association
The Ulster Defence Association is the largest although not the deadliest loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 and undertook a campaign of almost twenty-four years during "The Troubles"...
(UDA) and the Orange Order.
Location
Sandy Row is situated in south Belfast, beginning at the edge of the city centre, close to the Europa HotelEuropa Hotel
The Europa Hotel is a four-star hotel in Great Victoria Street, Belfast, Northern Ireland. It has hosted presidents, prime ministers and celebrities, including President Bill Clinton during his visits to Belfast in 1995 and 1998....
. The road runs south from the Boyne Bridge (formerly the Saltwater Bridge) over the old Dublin railway line into Great Victoria Street
Belfast Great Victoria Street railway station
Belfast Great Victoria Street is a major railway station serving the city centre of Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is one of two major stations in the city, along with , and is one of the four stations located in the city centre, the others being Belfast Central, and . It is near Great Victoria...
station, then crosses the Donegall Road
Donegall Road
The Donegall Road runs from Shaftesbury Square in Belfast city centre to the Falls Road in west Belfast. It is bisected by the Westlink, and the largest part of the road, prior to the Westlink junction, is predominantly unionist...
and on to the bottom of the Lisburn Road
Lisburn Road
The Lisburn Road is a main arterial road linking Belfast and Lisburn, in Northern Ireland.The Lisburn Road is now an extension of the "Golden Mile" with many shops, boutiques, wine bars, restaurants and coffee houses. The road runs almost parallel to the Malone Road, the two being joined by many...
. At one end of the road was the famous Murray's tobacco factory, which first opened in 1810, while at the other is a large Orange
Orange Institution
The Orange Institution is a Protestant fraternal organisation based mainly in Northern Ireland and Scotland, though it has lodges throughout the Commonwealth and United States. The Institution was founded in 1796 near the village of Loughgall in County Armagh, Ireland...
hall.
History
Also known as The Royal Mile, and formerly called Carr's Row, Sandy Row is one of the oldest residential areas of Belfast. Its growth in population was in large part due to the expansion of the linen industry in Rowland Street. The name Sandy Row derived from the sandbank which abutted the road that followed the high-water mark resulting from the flow off the tidal waters of the Lagan RiverLagan River
Lagan is one of four main westcoast rivers in south-western Sweden besides Göta älv. It is with 244 kilometers one of the longest rivers in southern Sweden....
estuary. For over two thousand years, the road along the sandbank was the principal thoroughfare leading south from Carrickfergus
Carrickfergus
Carrickfergus , known locally and colloquially as "Carrick", is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,201 at the 2001 Census and takes its name from Fergus Mór mac Eirc, the 6th century king...
.
In the 19th century Sandy Row became a bustling shopping district, and by the turn of the 20th-century, there were a total of 127 shops and merchants based in the road. It continued to draw shoppers from all over Belfast until the outbreak of the Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
in the late 1960s. The rows of 19th-century terraced houses in the streets branching off Sandy Row have been demolished and replaced with modern housing. Six of the houses which formerly lined Rowland Street have been rebuilt in the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum.
It is a traditionally Protestant, close-knit loyalist
Ulster loyalism
Ulster loyalism is an ideology that is opposed to a united Ireland. It can mean either support for upholding Northern Ireland's status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom , support for Northern Ireland independence, or support for loyalist paramilitaries...
community, noted for its elaborate Orange Order parades on the Twelfth
The Twelfth
The Twelfth is a yearly Protestant celebration held on 12 July. It originated in Ireland during the 18th century. It celebrates the Glorious Revolution and victory of Protestant king William of Orange over Catholic king James II at the Battle of the Boyne...
, with over 40 Arches erected in its streets and a marching band of teenaged girls known as the "Sandy Row Girl's Band". In addition to the arches spanning the road, buildings and homes are decorated with flags, bunting and banners. The first Orange Arch was erected by Frank Reynolds in about 1921. In 1690, on his way south to fight at the Battle of the Boyne
Battle of the Boyne
The Battle of the Boyne was fought in 1690 between two rival claimants of the English, Scottish and Irish thronesthe Catholic King James and the Protestant King William across the River Boyne near Drogheda on the east coast of Ireland...
, King William III of England
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
and his troops travelled along Sandy Row. Tradition holds that part of his army camped on the ground where the Orange Hall now stands. The Hall was opened in June 1910 by Lady Henderson, wife of former Lord Mayor of Belfast
Lord Mayor of Belfast
The Lord Mayor of Belfast is the leader and chairman of Belfast City Council, elected annually from and by the City's 51 councillors.The Lord Mayor is Niall Ó Donnghaile of Sinn Féin, while the Deputy Lord Mayor is Ruth Patterson of the Democratic Unionist Party, who were elected in May 2011.The...
, James Henderson. By 1908, there were 34 Orange Lodges in the district. In the 19th and 20th-centuries, there was much sectarian fighting and rioting between Sandy Row Protestants and Catholics from Pound Loney, in the Lower Falls Road
Falls Road
The Falls Road is the main road through west Belfast in Northern Ireland; from Divis Street in Belfast city centre to Andersonstown in the suburbs. Its name is synonymous with the republican communities in the city. It is known as one of the more famous streets in Northern Ireland, drawing many...
.
In the Belfast Blitz
Belfast Blitz
The Belfast Blitz was an event that occurred on the night of Easter Tuesday, 15 April 1941 during World War II. Two hundred bombers of the German Air Force attacked the city of Belfast in Northern Ireland. Nearly one thousand people died as a result of the bombing and 1,500 were injured. In terms...
, the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
dropped a bomb in Blythe Street, damaging a terrace of houses.
The Sandy Row redevelopment association which was founded in 1970, was one of the first loyalist community groups to open an advice centre. In 1996, the Sandy Row Community Forum was established. It acts as an umbrella organisation for all the community groups in the area.
The Troubles
During The TroublesThe Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
, the area had a strong Ulster Defence Association
Ulster Defence Association
The Ulster Defence Association is the largest although not the deadliest loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 and undertook a campaign of almost twenty-four years during "The Troubles"...
(UDA) presence. Sandy Row is part of the UDA South Belfast Brigade, commanded for many years by the late John McMichael
John McMichael
John "Big John" McMichael was a leading Northern Irish loyalist who rose to become the most prominent figure within the Ulster Defence Association as the Deputy Commander and leader of its South Belfast Brigade. He was also commander of the organisation's cover name, the "Ulster Freedom Fighters"...
and currently by Jackie McDonald
Jackie McDonald
John "Jackie" McDonald is a senior Northern Irish loyalist and the incumbent Ulster Defence Association brigadier for South Belfast, having been promoted to the rank by former UDA commander Andy Tyrie in 1988, following John McMichael's killing by the Provisional IRA in December 1987...
.
In December 1972, senior UDA member Ernie Elliott
Ernie Elliott
Ernest "Ernie" Elliott , nicknamed "Duke", was a Northern Irish loyalist activist and a leading member of the Ulster Defence Association during its early days. Unusually for the generally right-wing UDA Elliott expressed admiration for socialism and communism and frequently quoted the words of Che...
was shot dead outside a Sandy Row club by a fellow UDA man after a drunken brawl. On 7 February 1973, Brian Douglas, a Protestant fireman from Sailortown
Sailortown, Belfast
Sailortown was a working-class dockland community located in the Docks area of Belfast, Northern Ireland. Established in the mid-19th century on partly reclaimed land, it had a mixed Protestant and Catholic population...
was shot to death by the UDA whilst fighting a fire caused by street disturbances in Bradbury Place. Two Protestant civilian men were killed on 30 March 1974 in a no-warning bomb attack carried out by an unknown republican
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
paramilitary group against the Crescent Bar. On 30 January 1976, the Provisional IRA
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
exploded a car bomb
Car bomb
A car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
outside the Klondyke Bar on the corner of McAdam Street. John Smiley, a middle-aged Protestant civilian was killed outright in the blast. Many people inside the pub suffered serious injuries including a barmaid who lost an eye. Less than two years before the attack, the Klondyke Bar was the subject of a photographic essay by Bill Kirk in a series of photographs taken in Sandy Row. The Klondyke had been built in 1872.
In the same year of the Klondyke bombing, an 18-year-old Catholic girl had her throat slit behind a Sandy Row pub by loyalist paramilitaries after she had been discovered drinking inside with Protestant friends. Sandy Row UDA members also launched a series of attacks on nearby Durham Street, a mainly Catholic area between Sandy Row and the Falls Road, in the early 1970s with four Catholics killed in the area, including 16 year old Bernard McErlain, in late March-April 1973.
The large UDA/Ulster Freedom Fighters mural is one of many loyalist murals found in Sandy Row; it can be seen from the northern end of the street. The mural is supposed to mirror the Republican mural in Derry. Sandy Row features a loyalist souvenir shop which sells UDA and Ulster Volunteer Force
Ulster Volunteer Force
The Ulster Volunteer Force is a loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in late 1965 or early 1966 and named after the Ulster Volunteer Force of 1913. The group's volunteers undertook an armed campaign of almost thirty years during The Troubles...
(UVF) paraphernalia.
In October 2011, a bomb was discovered on a patch of ground at Bradbury Place, which caused a security alert resulting in the evacuation of homes, bars, and businesses in the area. Army bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion on the device.
Sport
The Linfield F.C.Linfield F.C.
Linfield F.C. , is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, whose home ground is Windsor Park in Belfast, which is also the home of the Northern Ireland international team....
was founded in Sandy Row in March 1886 by workers from the Ulster Spinning Company's Linfield Mill. Originally named the Linfield Athletic Club, its playing ground, "the Meadow", was situated behind the mill. Linfield's first captain was Sam "Thaw" Torrans.
Celebrated snooker champion Alex "Hurricane" Higgins
Alex Higgins
Alexander Gordon "Alex" Higgins , also known by his nickname of Hurricane Higgins, was a Northern Irish professional snooker player who was twice World Champion and twice runner-up. Higgins earned the nickname The Hurricane because of his speed of play...
was a native of Sandy Row. He first started playing at the age of 11 in the Jampot club.
In popular culture
In the song "Madame GeorgeMadame George
"Madame George" is a ten-minute song by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It appears on the album Astral Weeks, released in 1968. The song features Morrison performing the vocals and acoustic guitar...
" on his album Astral Weeks
Astral Weeks
Astral Weeks is the second solo album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in November 1968 on Warner Bros. Records. It was Morrison's first album after Warner Bros. had been able to free him from his contract with Bang Records...
, Van Morrison
Van Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
sings:
"Then you know you gotta go
On the train from Dublin up to Sandy Row"