placenamesWillowfield
Páirc na Saileán
Willowfield’s church histories trace the growth of east Belfast, from nineteenth-century building campaigns to the reuse of a country-house estate.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Páirc na Saileán · Irish · main form · validated name
- Willowfield · English · main form
Place & story
John Lanyon’s parish church
Willowfield Parish Church on Woodstock Road was built in 1871–72 to John Lanyon’s design, on land presented by William Mullan. Consecrated on 6 August 1872, the red-brick Gothic building was the seventh and last church erected for the Belfast Church Extension and Endowment Society. It formed part of a programme to provide churches as Belfast expanded. [2]
A changing outline
The Church of Ireland building continued to change after its opening. William John Fennell designed a nave extension and porch in 1900–01. A memorial spire to Canon Charles Harding followed in 1925–26, designed by Robert Lynn and built by Redpath, Brown and Company. The spire was removed in 1951, leaving the church with a different silhouette from the one familiar to worshippers between the wars. [2]
From Willowfield to McQuiston
McQuiston Presbyterian Church began in 1892 as Willowfield Presbyterian Church. Its first building, remembered as the Iron Church, became too small as the surrounding district filled with terraced housing. The permanent church opened on 27 February 1897. Its later name commemorates W. J. McQuiston, whose bequest met almost half the building cost; Thomas Rutherford Ballantine was the congregation’s first minister. [3]
Willowfield House and Saint Anthony’s
Saint Anthony’s Catholic Church occupies former grounds of Willowfield House, associated with businessman Jonathan Vint. Bishop Henry bought the house and eight acres in 1906, but the church project was delayed through the First World War and subsequent upheaval. A temporary Mass house served in the meantime. The permanent church opened on 16 October 1938, and Saint Anthony’s became an independent parish in 1955. [4]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Down
- Barony
- Castlereagh Lower
- Civil parish
- Knockbreda
- Coordinates
- 54.57816, -5.91192 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 130172 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Willowfield. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Willowfield Parish Church, Woodstock Road, work 54915 · Irish Architectural Archive / Dictionary of Irish Architects
- Our History: McQuiston Presbyterian Church · McQuiston Presbyterian Church
- History of Saint Anthony’s Church · Saint Anthony’s Parish; historical account by Ambrose Macauley
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2019-10-08. How this page was prepared.