placenamesWhiterock
An Charraig Gheal
Official records document Whiterock’s contested leisure-centre opening and the later closure of its army base.
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
- An Charraig Gheal · Irish · main form · validated name
- Whiterock · English · main form
Place & story
Fort Whiterock
Fort Whiterock occupied part of the industrial estate on Springfield Road during the Troubles. A Ministry of Defence response published in 2019 records the Army’s requisition of the site on 31 October 1979 and its closure on 21 May 1999. These dates give a precise span to the military use of this part of the district. [2]
The leisure centre opening
Whiterock Leisure Centre became the focus of a political dispute in 1984. A contemporary Northern Ireland Office briefing records an alternative community opening on 12 September after Belfast City Council decided not to invite local MP Gerry Adams to its official ceremony on 14 September. The briefing describes a well-used council facility but also continuing disagreement over flags and its management. [3]
Recording the base’s closure
Army Information Services filmed the closure of Fort Whiterock on 20–21 May 1999. The Imperial War Museums catalogue describes interviews with soldiers, empty interiors and the final convoy leaving before the gates closed. It also records discussion of returning the land for industrial development. The surviving film record captures the physical withdrawal from a site used by the Army for almost twenty years. [4]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Antrim
- Barony
- Belfast Upper
- Civil parish
- Shankill
- Within
- Ballymurphy
- Coordinates
- 54.58845, -5.98876 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 135868 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Whiterock. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Fort Whiterock: Ministry of Defence FOI response 2019/02734, 22 March 2019 · Ministry of Defence
- Whiterock Leisure Centre briefing, 4 January 1985, PRONI NIO/31/18A · Northern Ireland Office; Public Record Office of Northern Ireland
- Closure of Fort Whiterock, May 1999, BFB 218 · Army Information Services; Imperial War Museums catalogue
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2021-05-26. How this page was prepared.