placenamesRiverdale
Gleann na hAbhann
Riverdale’s streets preserve the history of a growing Belfast suburb, while official records document events that affected its residents.
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
- Gleann na hAbhann · Irish · main form · validated name
- Riverdale · English · main form
Place & story
The emerging housing district
Riverdale Gardens appears in the 1955 Belfast street directory with a small number of addresses and land still described as vacant, according to Belfast Street Names. The project also traces Riverdale Park Drive through two successive directory entries: Riverdale Drive in 1959 and Riverdale Park Drive in 1960. These records capture the naming and development of the housing streets during the post-war expansion of Belfast. [2] [3]
The shooting at Riverdale Park South
Patrick McVeigh was shot dead at the junction of Finaghy Road North and Riverdale Park South on 13 May 1972. Four other people were wounded in the same incident. The Public Prosecution Service recorded these facts in its 2024 account of investigations into shootings involving the British Army’s Military Reaction Force. The junction is therefore a documented location in the history of the conflict in west Belfast. [4]
Flood alleviation on the La Salle Stream
Riverdale Park East has a history of flooding associated with the La Salle Stream. In March 2022 the Department for Infrastructure announced that a £365,000 flood-alleviation scheme there was substantially complete. The works installed approximately 180 metres of new culvert, with replanting planned for the spring. The department reported that ten homes would benefit from reduced flood risk, recording a significant intervention in the district’s water infrastructure. [5]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Antrim
- Barony
- Belfast Upper
- Civil parish
- Shankill
- Coordinates
- 54.57049, -5.98965 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 135848 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Riverdale. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Riverdale Gardens · Belfast Street Names
- Riverdale Park Drive · Belfast Street Names
- PPS issues decisions in relation to 1972 shootings,8 February 2024 · Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland
- Mallon announces£365,000 flood alleviation scheme in West Belfast complete,3 March 2022 · Department for Infrastructure
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2021-05-26. How this page was prepared.