Clifton House Belfast

21/01/2025

The Ladies Association for the Relief of Irish Destitution, which was chaired by a Miss Knowles, was well received amongst local Belfast women with 89 ladies joining its ranks on the General Committee.

Some of the women who joined this Association were the wives or relatives of the gentlemen who sat on the board of the Belfast Charitable Society or were members of the Poorhouse Ladies’ Committee; including Mrs J Cunningham, Mrs Drummond Anderson, Miss McCracken, Miss Mitchell and Mrs Wakefield.

17/01/2025

In the middle of the 19th century, the island of Ireland was significantly impacted by the Great Famine. The vast number of people who left the country in pursuit of a better life for themselves and their families was one way it affected the nation.

Nearly 2 million Irish people left Ireland for America and Australia between 1845 and 1855, and another 750,000 went to Britain. This chaotic and panic-stricken mass exodus was the largest single population movement of the 19th century. Unfortunately, overcrowding and unhygienic conditions caused thousands of emigrants to perish during the Atlantic crossing to America.

17/01/2025

At the grand age of 76, Mary Ann McCracken joined the Belfast Ladies Association for the Relief of Irish Destitution on Friday 1 January 1847 and attended its inaugural meeting held at the Commercial Buildings.

The purpose of this Society was to raise money to help people throughout Ireland who were impacted by the devastation caused by the Great Famine, ‘being guided by the urgency of the case without reference to religious distinctions’. Relief was prioritised for mothers and their families and was distributed out in the form of food, clothing and ‘firing’.

16/01/2025

📯We have an exciting line up of talks coming up in February!📯

On 6 February, Colin Shaw, one of Clifton House's very own volunteers, will be giving a talk on the United Irishmen and the 1798 Irish rebellion, told from the perspectives of their leaders and opponents who lie in peace in Clifton Street Cemetery.

Dr Robyn Atcheson, on 20 February, will explore the impact of the Great Famine on Belfast in the late 1840s and how institutions like the Belfast Poor House, hospitals and the workhouse worked together in an attempt to ease the problems facing the town.

🎟For more information and to book tickets please visit: https://cliftonbelfast.com/whats-on/talks/

Reclaim the Enlightenment Visit Belfast What's On In Belfast

16/01/2025

14/01/2025

This Day, we want to celebrate our fantastic volunteers. This lovely bunch dedicated over 300 hrs last year, delivering talks, tours & events for us. Their enthusiasm is contagious, making our heritage accessible.

Thank you for all you do.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund Northern Ireland

10/01/2025

Before we take a deep dive into history of the Great Famine and how it impacted Belfast, lets take a step back to explain what it is and how the famine was caused.

The Great Famine, also known as the Great Hunger and the Irish Potato Famine, was a period of mass disease, starvation and emigration in Ireland which lasted from 1845 to 1852. The Famine was caused by blight, a fungal infection, which destroyed Ireland’s potato crop upon which a third of Ireland's population was dependent on for food. There had been crop failures before, but during the Great Famine the potato crop failed across the whole country and reoccurred over several years.

Come back next week and we'll discover how the Famine impacted Ireland as a whole before exploring how it affected those living in Belfast.

08/01/2025

We are thrilled to share that thanks to the generous support from the Department of Foreign Affairs Reconciliation Fund, we are embarking on a vital exploration of the rich and complex history contained within Clifton Street Cemetery.

Over the next two months, we will delve into one of the most harrowing chapters of Irish history: the Great Famine. We will investigate not only the toll it took on the people of Belfast but also those who fell victim to the Famine that are buried in Clifton Street Cemetery. We will also explore how people, like Mary Ann McCracken, tried to help those in need.

07/01/2025

It is great to be back in Clifton House again after the Christmas Holidays!

We hope you enjoyed the holidays, and we look forward to telling you more stories about Belfast Charitable Society, Clifton House and, of course, Mary Ann McCracken.

06/01/2025

Thank you so much to The Irish Times for such a fantastic article last month, to mark the 250th Anniversary of Clifton House. Journalist Paul Clements did an incredible job of capturing our history.

For those that missed it over the Christmas season, you can read it again here:
https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/an-irish-diary/2024/12/29/the-oldest-working-building-in-belfast-paul-clements-on-clifton-house/

02/01/2025

To start 2025 off, we want to share some of our favourite pictures of Clifton House taken by staff, volunteers and the very talented photographer Thomas McMullan. Its hard to believe this beauty is now 250 years old!

We would love to see your pics of Clifton House too. Please tag and share with us on our socials.

Happy New Year

North Belfast News

01/01/2025

31/12/2024

What a year we've had celebrating 250 years of Clifton House. Our year long celebrations have now come to an end, and we want to thank everyone who followed along online and/or joined us at our many many talks, tours and events.

This year, as well as reflecting on our long history of philanthropy and social reform, we have also been looking ahead to our future. Throughout the year, we brought others together to talk about the reality of poverty and disadvantage today – with an aim to inform our future work.

It's not too late to have your say. We'd love to hear from you, if you have two minutes to spare.

End of year survey - https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/250CliftonHouseYearEndSurvey

Thank you for supporting our work.

30/12/2024

After the poorhouse was built, the Belfast Charitable Society in January 1775 bought various provisions, such as potatoes and meal, that the inhabitants would need and established rules and regulations to manage the building.

As our 250 celebrations come to an end, we would like to thank everyone who celebrated with us in our yearlong programme of events and those helped at our events, talks, tours and Heritage Day. We hope that you will continue to support and follow our work.

If you have engaged with any of these activities throughout 2024, then we would love to hear from you. Please use the link below to give us some feedback and help us plan our future work.https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/250CliftonHouseYearEndSurvey

26/12/2024

On Boxing Day 1768, Robert Joy, as was tradition, gave his servants their ‘Christmas-box’, which was an employer’s gift to staff since they would have to wait on their employers on Christmas Day. The servants were allowed the next day after Christmas to visit their own families. These Christmas-boxes were taken home and contained gifts, bonuses, and sometimes leftover food.

25/12/2024

Clifton House, an enduring Christmas Gift

On Christmas Eve, 1774, following more than a decade of fundraising, planning and building, Clifton House, formerly the Poor House of Belfast, opened its doors for the first time.

The beautiful Georgian building, at that time sat at the edges of the growing town of Belfast, on a hill for all to see. When it opened, it satisfied the need to care for the poor and infirm. However it was also a statement…a commitment by the Society to continue to provide for the people of the town and city for what has now turned out to be 250 years.

Click here to find out more: https://cliftonbelfast.com/clifton-house-an-enduring-christmas-gift/

24/12/2024

On Christmas Eve, 1774, following more than a decade of fundraising, planning and building, Clifton House, formerly the Poor House of Belfast, opened its doors for the first time.

On this particular winter’s day, members of the Belfast Charitable Society met in the Market House (now the Assembly Rooms) and agreed, with ‘immediate effect’, that ‘as many of the Begging poor as the Poor House can at present accommodate be received as soon as possible’ and that ‘as many of the sick poor as can be provided for in the Infirmary be also taken in as soon as possible.’