Magilligan
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|---|---|
 View of Magilligan Point andInishowen beyond | |
  Magilligan Location withinNorthern Ireland | |
| Population | 578 (2001 Census) |
| Irish grid reference | H8396 |
| Civil parish |
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| District | |
| County | |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Postcode district | BT49 |
| Dialling code | 028 |
| Police | Northern Ireland |
| Fire | Northern Ireland |
| Ambulance | Northern Ireland |
| UK Parliament | |
| NI Assembly | |
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Magilligan is apeninsula at the mouth ofLough Foyle inCounty Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is an extensive 79,000-acre (32,000-hectare) coastal site, part military firing range and part nature reserve, and is home toHM Prison Magilligan.[1][2] The tip of the peninsula, which lies less than a mile fromGreencastle inCounty Donegal, is known asMagilligan Point. The two are linked by a ferry service.
The peninsula historically belonged to a district known as "MacGilligan's Country", which formed a major part of thebarony ofKeenaght.[1]
Magilligan served as the base line for triangulation for themapping of Ireland in the 19th century.Colonel Thomas Colby chose Magilligan due to the flatness of the strand and its proximity to Scotland which, along with the rest of Britain, had been accurately mapped in previous decades. A straight line precisely 30,533 feet (9,306 m) was measured from North Station to Ballykelly in 1828, from which all other references were measured. The survey finished in 1846 whenCounty Kerry was mapped.[3]
There is a well-preservedMartello Tower at Magilligan Point, built between 1815 and 1817. It is one of the northernmost of the 74 towers built along the coasts of Ireland during the Napoleonic Wars.[4]
HM Prison Magilligan is situated along the main road (Point Road) running out to Magilligan Point. It opened in 1972 and has a capacity of 568 prisoners.[2]
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It is close toBellarena railway station and there is a ferry service which operates during the summer season, connecting Magilligan with Greencastle across the lough.[1]
During the 19th century theLondonderry & Coleraine Railway operated ashort-lived tramway between the village ofMagilligan and the settlement ofMagilligan Point. Opening in July 1885 and closing in October 1885, it is the shortest-lived passenger railway line in Ireland.[5]
