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BALLYCARRY AND GLENOE |
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BALLYCARRY is the site of the remains of the first Presbyterian
church ever to be built in Ireland, Templecorran , with a memorial to
its first minister, who was ordained in 1613. The church 's graveyard
contains the tombs of some of the supporters of the 1798 Rebellion,
including that of James Burns, whose cryptic gravestone can only be
deciphered using the following key: the numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4 represent
the vowels "a", "e", "i" and "o" respectively, and 5 and 6 the letter
"w". Another United Irishman, James Orr - better known as the Bard of
Ballycarry, Ulster's answer to Robbie Burns - is also buried here, and
some ringing verses in dialect are carved into his tombstone. There's
also a grand Masonic memorial of 1831, which bears a patriotic poem
about Ireland: "Erin, loved land! From age to age, Be thou more great,
more famed and free". The author might not have been impressed by the
huge and colourful gable-end mural of William of Orange astride a
prancing white horse which adorns one of the village houses.
Five miles along the back road from Ballycarry nestles the picturesque
village of GLENOE , visited for its pretty waterfall and for Maud's Ice
Cream Factory (Mon-Fri 8am-4pm), where you can discover the intricacies
of the production process and sample such flavoursome varieties as the
award-winning "Pooh Bear and Guinness" in the factory's café.
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