St Patrick
Armoy, County Antrim
Set in a landscape steeped in myth and legend, the site of St Patrick’s church stands testament to the long tradition of Christianity in the land of saints and scholars.
Drumtullagh church was built with dressed basalt in 1840/1841 to a design by Charles Lanyon and features original Art Deco style stained glass windows.
Situated on a prominent hillside (the name Drumtullagh means a ridge rising above others) on a fine day views can be observed of five of the nine counties of Ulster.
The old name for the church is Croshan, which means little cross so at one stage there was a Celtic cross located in the area. A few hundred yards away, is the site of the old church of Kilmoyle, meaning the bald church or church without a spire or tower, probably a basic thatched roof building.
The graveyard surrounding this old church can still be discerned although there are no headstones or other markers. Before it became a parish in its own right in 1875, it was known as the Grange of Drumtullagh, a grange being the lands associated with a local monastery. This ancient monastic establishment, of which no trace now remains, was located on what is now known as Manister (monastery) Lane, a few hundred yards from the present church. So Drumtullagh church is the successor to many of the ancient religious establishments in the area.
In the past, when life in rural Ireland was difficult, many of the residents of this simple country parish emigrated to Canada, USA, Australia and New Zealand, and the extensive parish records of births, marriages and deaths are frequently used by descendants, researching their family trees.
