Very little is known about St. Colmanell, except that he was a nephew of St. Columba, was born in 555 A.D., and died about 611. Three other churches in Ireland - Connor, Muckamore and Lynally in the Diocese of Meath, and many religious foundations in western Scotland are associated with his memory.
The old church was
situated in the centre of the village, and occupied the site of the ancient
sixth century foundation. It is
surrounded by an old graveyard which is still in use. In old documents Ahoghill appears as Magherahoghill, interpreted
as 'the plain of the ford at the yew wood.' It was originally the largest
parochial unit in Co.Antrim, containing seventy-three townlands, spread over
four baronies and covering an area of 55 square miles. Prior to its division into three parts in
1840, Ahoghill was one of the wealthiest livings in the diocese. The rectorial tithes being worth more than
£1,000. per annum. The parish is now
bounded on the north by the parish of Craigs, on the west by Portglenone, on
the east by the parishes of Kilconriola (Ballymena) and Connor, on the south
east by Drummaul (Randalstown) and on the south west by Ballyscullion.
The ecclesiastical
parish now contains 27 townlands. The
religious revival of 1859 spread almost at once to Ahoghill, and had a great
deal to do with the beginnings of the present church. The rector at that time, the Rev. A. T. Lee, took a great
interest in the revival and, although it was accompanied by some questionable
incidents, it accomplished a considerable amount of good in the parish. The old church in the village was unable to
accommodate the congregations. The
rector visited England and told the story of the revival, with the result that
a considerable amount of money was raised, and it was decided to erect a new
church on a different site. Thanks to
the generosity of the Rev. R. W. Rowan of Mount Davys, who presented a site of
two acres at the Fair Hill, free of cost, work was able to proceed on the new
building.
The new churchyard
was consecrated on 22nd May 1861, by the Lord Bishop of the Diocese, the Rt.
Rev. Robert Knox, D.O. The foundation
stone of the church was laid on 4th August 1863 by Miss O'Neill of Shane's
Castle, Randalstown. The church,
dedicated to the memory of St. Colmanell, was consecrated on St. Bartholomew's Day, 24th August 1865, by
Bishop Robert Knox. The sermon was
preached by the Very Rev. William Alexander, Dean of Emly, and subsequently
Bishop of Derry and Primate of All Ireland.
Mrs. C.F. Alexander, the writer of many well-known hymns, wrote a
special poem for the occasion. Divine
Service commenced at 12 noon, and at this hour since the 'morning' service has
always been held.
The church stands on
a conspicuous site near the village, and can be seen for miles around. It cost £3,000. to build and is of cruciform construction, consisting of nave 69
feet by 29 feet, chancel, 22 feet by 18 feet, and north and south transepts, 22
feet by 16 feet. A tower and spire
rises over the porch to a height of 88 feet.
The spire is surmounted by a beautiful wrought-iron cross by Skidmore of
Coventry. The old parish church was
taken down when the new one was built.
Portglenone Parish Church was grouped with Ahoghill in 1976.
In 1994, when work
was undertaken to repair the spire the cross was replaced by one of stainless
steel. The original cross was placed in
the church above the font. The stained
glass windows are a splendid example of the work of William Whales and forms
the only complete set of windows by this artist in northern Ireland.
Rev A T Lee, while
Rector of Ahoghill, was active in the wider life of the church at the time of
disestablishment. In 1863 he wrote
"The Present Case of the Church of Ireland" in defence of the
church. He also edited the journal of
the General Convention which met in 1870 to draw up the Constitution of the
Church of Ireland and established the present administrative structure of the
church.
Same core source?:
two independent internet sources take an alternate Ahoghill spelling with:
Lee, Rev. W.H.A. St Colmanell, Aghoghill: A History of its
Parish, 1865
Ednote: If the
original is printed as Aghoghill, the seeker after this
source may have to use the eccentric spelling to find the book, or find
nothing.
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Ballymena Observer
Microfilm
Overall Start date
22.8.1857
Start of film at
Vol.3 No.109
30.6.1860
Ahoghill Parish
Church Organ Fund
2.5.1863
Moravian Minister m.
in Ahoghill Parish Church to daughter of Rev. Payne of Gracehill
1.8.1863
Ahoghill new Parish
Church foundation stone, Aug. 8 ceremony
6.5.1865
Ahoghill new Church
of Ireland
26.8.1865
Ahoghill Church of
Ireland Consecration
13.1.1866
Gracehill, Moravian
Church organ rebuilt
13.10.1866
Sale of building
materials of old Church of Ahoghill
3.7.1869
Ahoghill, Rev. Lee
testimonial
22.5.1869
Anti-disestablishment
Demonstration in Belfast
7.9.1872
Ahoghill, sale for
Rev. Dr. Lee, Rectory contents