Dunluce Castle….

This colorized photochrom print was taken in the 1890s. ~ "May the best day of your past, Be the worst day of your future."

This colorized photochrom print was taken in the 1890s. ~ “May the best day of your past, Be the worst day of your future.”

The ruins of Dunluce Castle “now” in Ireland.

The ruins of Dunluce Castle “now” in Ireland.

The limestone cliffs of the White Rocks ends abruptly against a dark basalt outcrop which is majestically crowned by Dunluce Castle and joined to the mainland by an arched walkway. Underneath lies the Mermaid’s Cave with its legend of a lost soldier taken to the deep by a beautiful mermaid, other stories tell of smugglers and Spanish treasure.

Dunluce Castle is one of our heritage gems, its outline provides an iconic view of this part of the Causeway Coastal Route. It is frequently quoted as being one of Ireland most romantic castle locations.

The castle has seen many additions to its original structure over the centuries, it fell into disrepair after the last resident, Randall McDonnell, the second Earl of Antrim moved to Ballymagarry House in the mid 1600s. In the 1745 Ballymagarry House was destroyed by fire and the seat of the Earl’s of Antrim moved to its present location at Glenarm Castle.

Close by is the ancient ruins of St. Cuthbert’s named after a Northumbrian monk, it is also the possible burying place of sailors and noblemen from the Spanish Armada. On a clear day you can look over an expanse of ocean from here to Donegal and round to Islay, it was within this vista that the tragedy of the emigrant ship the Exmouth took place in April, 1857, bound for Quebec, she spent three days in horrendous sea conditions before finally breaking up on rocks off Islay with the loss of 240 lives. — at Bushmills, Co. Antrim, Ireland.

About CJ Murdoch

Looking For "Dead People"! My Journey Back In Time - Tracing my ancestors and researching the counties, cities and towns where they resided. Taking a “Glimpse” into their lives and stories and the times in which they lived; all in an effort to learn about their “Dash”! “I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of his friend. He referred to the dates on her tombstone from the beginning – to the end. He noted that first came the date of her birth and spoke of the second with tears, but he said that what mattered most of all was the dash between those years.” I have always been interested in researching my family tree and “hanging out” in cemeteries. Like most of us... I didn't ask enough questions when elderly family were still living. Oh, what I would give for 24 hours and a camera with my ancestors… just to sit and listen! I'm researching many family lines, including: Murdoch, Wilson, Berry, Love, Scott, Beattie/Beatty, Hendren, Sweeney, Robinson and Elvin; just to name a few. My families are predominantly from counties Antrim, Donegal and Londonderry. However, it seems that many of them, both maternal and paternal lines, originally hailed from Co. Donegal. I was born and raised in Northern Ireland and now live in Ottawa, Canada, making frequent trips back home to visit with my family. Of course those visits also include treks to the many burial grounds of my ancestors. My most recent trip back home was during the summer of 2019! Looking forward to August of 2020 when I will return. If you are interested in help tracing your ancestors I’d love to hear from you!
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4 Responses to Dunluce Castle….

  1. J Berry says:

    EXCELLENT !!!!!!!!!!! I love it ! My obvious Berry connection aside, I wish more sites looked like this, the set-up, the pictures and the very informative history topics. A pleasure to read !

    Like

  2. danielle berry says:

    Very well done Colleen, its all so interesting!

    Like

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