Aghadowey Presbyterian Church
Aghadowey, County Londonderry
Aghadoweys 300 year history has at its centre worship and education, our members continue show care for each other and reach out to others.
St Guaire’s Church community is first and foremost a place of welcome. We are set in a very rural area of Northern Ireland in the Diocese of Derry and Raphoe.
The Church is named St Guaire after its patron saint who is said to have founded monasteries in the area in the 7th century. Aghadowey Parish Church which was in ruins in 1622 was rebuilt in 1797 by the Earl of Bristol. It was severely damaged in 1828 when the spire was struck by lightning. The church is constructed of basalt and is rectangular in shape with a spire at the western end. There is a small balcony where the organ is also situated. The pews, arranged on either side of the central aisle, can seat 150 people.
Cecil Frances Alexander who wrote many well known hymns and who lived in the area for a time, she wrote 'All things bright and beautiful' and 'There is a green hill far away'.
We have a history of famous people from the church - Phelium O’Neill one of the founding members of the Alliance Party, and Sir Norman Stronge first speaker of the Northern Ireland Parliament was church warden too.