St Johnston Baile Suingean | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 Main Street | |
  St Johnston Location in Ireland | |
| Coordinates:54°56′05″N07°27′30″W / 54.93472°N 7.45833°W /54.93472; -7.45833 | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Ulster |
| County | County Donegal |
| Barony | Raphoe North[1] |
| Government | |
| • Dáil constituency | Donegal |
| Population | |
• Total | 571 |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (WET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-1 (IST (WEST)) |
| Website | stjohnstonandcarrigans |
St Johnston, officiallySaint Johnstown[3] (Irish:Baile Suingean[3]), is a village,townland, and anelectoral division inCounty Donegal inUlster, the northernprovince in Ireland.[3] It is in the Laggan district of East Donegal on the left bank of theRiver Foyle.[4] It is in thecivil parish ofTaughboyne andbarony ofRaphoe North,[3] on theR236 (Lifford–Newtowncunningham) road where it overlaps theR265 (Carrigans–Raphoe) road.[5] The village is about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south ofDerry.
St Baithin's Church (popularly known as 'the Chapel'), theCatholic parish church in the village, was designed byE. W. Godwin, the mid-Victorian British architect. It is aneo-Gothic structure that was built between 1857 and 1860.[6]
St JohnstonPresbyterian Church, located on theDerry Road, is the other main structure within the village. Parts of this church, orkirk, may date toc. 1724. However, most of the present neo-Gothic structure was built in the early nineteenth century. The 'thin' neo-Gothic tower was built in 1849.[7] This church, which is owned by thePresbyterian Church in Ireland, was severely damaged by alightning strike in the mid-1980s. The tower of the church was particularly damaged. The building, however, which serves the largeUlster Scots Presbyterian community in this part of The Laggan, had been fully restored by around 1990.[citation needed]
Mongavlin Castle (also known as Mongevlin Castle),[8] a ruined castle, is located approximately three kilometres (1.9 mi) south of the village. It was once a stronghold of theÓ Domhnaill (O'Donnell) clan, Kings ofTír Chonaill. In the very early seventeenth century, Mongevlin was the chief residence ofIníon Dubh (d. 1608), the daughter of bothSéamus Mac Dhòmhnaill, 6th Laird ofDunnyveg, anIslay-based Gaelic nobleman, and his wife,Lady Agnes Campbell; Iníon Dubh was the mother ofRed Hugh O'Donnell. When Iníon Dubh came toUlster to marrySir Aodh mac Maghnusa Ó Domhnaill (Sir Hugh McManus O'Donnell;c. 1540 – c. 1600), she brought a force of 100 of the biggest men she could find inScotland for protection.[citation needed] 80 of these were of the nameCrawford. When Mongavlin was eventually abandoned, the Crawfords settled and married in the locality. Many of their descendants can still be found in the area to this day.
On 23 July 1610, at the start of thePlantation of Ulster, Mongevlin Castle and its lands were granted tothe 2nd Duke of Lennox (1574–1624), a senior-rankingScottish nobleman.[9] Lennox, who was already a peer in thePeerage of Scotland, was created the 1stDuke of Richmond in thePeerage of England in 1623, making him aduke twice over. On his death on 16 February 1624, the title ofDuke of Lennox and the castle and lands at Mongavlin passed to his brotherEsmé, 1st Earl of March (1579–1624), who now became (briefly) the 3rdDuke of Lennox. Esmé had marriedKatherine Clifton (c. 1592–1637) in 1609; she becamethe 2nd Baroness Clifton,suo jure, in 1618. After her husband Esmé's death in August 1624, Katherine, nowDowager Duchess of Lennox, then marriedthe 2nd Earl of Abercorn (c. 1604 – c. 1670), another Scottish nobleman, c. 1632. Unlike the Dukes of Lennox, Lord Abercorn had actually moved toUlster, where he was now based. The centre of Lord Abercorn's estate was the nearby town ofStrabane in WestTyrone.[citation needed]
Aborough was established at the site in the reign ofKing James VI & I during the early years of thePlantation of Ulster.[10]St Johnstown was aborough constituency in theIrish House of Commons from about 1619 to theActs of Union 1800.[10] The borough was arotten borough and the settlement never more than a village.[4]
King James II passed through on his way to theSiege of Derry in 1690. From St. Johnston, he sent a letter proposing surrender, which was rejected.[8]
St Johnston was one of several Protestant villages in East Donegal that would have been transferred to Northern Ireland had the recommendations of theIrish Boundary Commission been enacted in 1925.[11]
St Johnston Cricket Club, founded in 1898,[12] plays in the North WestCricket League Championship (Second) Division.[13]
Kildrum Tigers Football Club, sometimes known as 'the Wee Toun', is anassociation football club founded in 1948.[14] The club fields teams in theUlster Senior League.[15]
Local bowling clubs, all playing in the DonegalIndoor Bowling League Division One, include St Johnston Bowling Club, St Johnston Pres. Bowling Club and St Johnston Resource Centre Bowling Club.[16]
The town had astation on theGreat Northern Railway which was closed in 1965.[17]
The nearest railway station now is operated byNorthern Ireland Railways and runs fromDerry~Londonderry in Derry, viaColeraine, to bothGrand Central Station andLanyon Place Station inBelfast.[citation needed]
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