Photo History Ballyclare People have lived in this part of the Six Mile Valley in County Antrim for five thousand years. Invaders included Vikings and Normans. At the same time as the Pilgrim Fathers landed in America it was finally settled by Scots planters. Jonathan Swift preached here and it was from here the families of Mark Twain, Sam Houston and General Alexander Macomb left for America. Walks Programme for 2008   About Ballyclare Historical Society Our Historical Society was launched in 1980 so this year we will celebrate a quarter of a century of lectures, publications and visits to archaeological sites. We have links with the 80 other societies in this part of Ireland and friendly exchanges with societies in Mayo, Meath and Donegal. This site records our activities and the local history around Ballyclare.  New Book about Ballyclare in the 1950s and 60s   Ballyclare Remembered by S. J. McKendry Janette McKendry has lived in Ballyclare all her life and in this book of short stories and poems she recalls with humour and affection and her own unique sketches, the people and things which have made it such a special place for her. The book is available locally price £6 and by post for £7 anywhere in the U.K. Details by email from ollar@utvinternet.com Archie Reid's Ballyclare, Doagh and Ballyeaston Four Thousand Years in the Valley Beneath the Holestone The book is available in Ballyclare price £5 or by post to anywhere in the UK for £6. Please contact us at ollar@utvinternet.com Holestone stands on its solitary rock high above the Six Mile Valley as it has done for four thousand years. It has watched the unfolding history of the valley and its peoples from the Bronze Age traders who used the crossing place on the river to the growth of the market town of Ballyclare with its ring of villages. Did it even see a holy man named Patrick pass by Rashee? It has witnessed the armour clad Norman soldiers ride by on their way from John de Courcy’s great castle at Carrickfergus to Lough Neagh and observed the spread of farms with their circular raths and souterrains made to hide from the Viking raiders. It has seen the coming of the Scots planters and hunted men hiding out after the Battle of Antrim in 1798. It has watched other richly dressed hunters chasing deer on the Donegal estates and bombs falling on a distant city under the Cave Hill. In this book Archie Reid tells the story of the people who have made this part of the Six Mile Valley their home using archaeological evidence, contemporary accounts and a lifetime's research. It begins with the men who left the Ballyclare Flint Hoard and highlights include the first farmers, the Plantation, the '98, and a detailed look at Ballyclare, Dough and Ballyeaston in the 1830s. The book also features the May Fair, Paper Town and the events and changes in the Twentieth Century together with a wealth of archive photos.  Local Mills Books on Local History Summer Walks 2008 Finding Family Roots Ulster Local Studies Competition  Links to Irish history sites Ballyclare Exiles Exchanges Walks and Outings Music Makers American Links 9th April 2008 Sign our Guestbook    Read our Guestbook