Seats of Co Antrim

[paulcrewe]

Good morning everyone,

In Google Books, I found a book called "Ireland Exhibited to England, In a Political and Moral Survey of Her Population, and in a Statistical and Scenographic Tour of Certain Districts etc., London, Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, London, 1823. Vol. II".

At the end of this book is a list entitled "Alphabetical Directory to the Seats of the County of Antrim with their respective Post Towns", and this list includes a reference to Alexander WHITFORD, resident in Cross whose Post Town is Ballycastle.  I assume this means Cross Townland in the Parish of Culfeightrin.

Can anyone help me with what the term "Seat" refers to in this context at this time.  I've tried googling it but as you can imagine it brings up too many unrelated references.  Does it mean that Alexander WHITFORD was the landlord of the Cross Townland?

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Paul

[aghadowey]

Looks like the same list here-
http://www.irishgenealogy.net/cp/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=127

Looking at the names/places I know it would seem to be a list of gentry or well-to-do gentlemen and their residences.

According to my dictionary one definition of a seat is "the principal residence of a dignitary, family, esp. a great country house."

[paulcrewe]

Thank you very much Aghadowey.  That makes sense and clears it up, I think.  Alexander WHITEFORD was said to live in the "Big House" in Cross townland.  Now I just need to find out where that "Big House" is, or was.

Paul

[sandal]

    Bighouse is a townland near Murlough Bay and can be located on Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland map  I G 9

[paulcrewe]

Thank you for that Sandal.  I have considered the townland Bighouse, but every reference I have for where Alexander lived (and died) says the Cross townland, so I think it must be referring to a large house, or a "great country house" located in the Cross townland as Aghadowey suggested.

Are the NI Ordnance Survey maps available anywhere online?

Regards, Paul

[TheWhuttle]

Hi Paul,

You can find Cross in the online Griffiths Valuation of 1864.
Use Place Name = "Cross"; County = "Antrim"; Parish = "Culfeightrin"
http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/index.xml?action=placeSearch

Use the Map Views option to see both the Ordnance Survey map data (dating from the 1830s, accompanying the Memoirs) as well as modern-day satellite images.

Zoom in 3 times to see the townland of Cross (a substantial area, the entire top of the headland);

Zoom in another 2 times to see Cross as a hamlet in the 1830s (like nearby Doon or Crockancarragh).
[Note the "a" and "b" designations for the buildings, lying in geographical area "2".]

The satellite view shows it as a substantial industrial facility nowadays.


Use the Original Page option to see the Valuation of the Tenements in 1864, together with ownship data.
[Right Click to Zoom In.]

The ultimate owner would be the Earl of Antrim (McDONNELL) probably subletting directly to the BOYD family.
[They came over to the Ballycastle area following King James deal with Antrim in 1605.  Their homelands were on Bute and Argyll (as a a subclan of the STEWARTs).]

---

In the list your man has "Esq." after his name.  This indicates he was a magistrate.
He was probably simply renting the house, and perhaps some lands as per the later 1864 data.]

[c.f. Stafford WHITTLE who owned Thistleborough, but lent it to his brother Farncis WHITTLE - who was also looking after Castle Upton while the Lords Templetown lived in London.]


Capt. Jock

[paulcrewe]

Thank you very much for that Capt Jock, those maps are really useful.  And thank you also for that information about Alexander being a magistrate.  The replies I've had to this post have been incredibly helpful and added significantly to my knowledge of where they and related families lived.

Best regards, Paul

[aghadowey]

The satellite view shows it as a substantial industrial facility nowadays.

If you look at Google Maps satellite view and Street View it shows agricultural buildings not industrial ones.

[HughC]

I don't think we can assume that a man described as "Esquire" was necessarily a magistrate.  Basically it meant someone who did not have to earn a living because he had inherited his wealth.  Very often that was in the form of land, and the larger landlords tended to be magistrates, but it doesn't always follow.  A magistrate had JP (justice of the peace) after his name.

I also think we can't assume that the ultimate owner was necessarily the Earl of Antrim.  The holder of that title in about 1590 was short of ready cash and invited over some wealthy families from Bute, notably the Stewarts of Ballintoy, to whom he sold considerable tracts of land.  For example, several townlands in the northern part of Culfeightrin parish.