Saturday 28 July 2012

Parish of Dunboe, St Paul's Church, Articlave



Dunboe, "the fort of the cow", is a parish on the north coast oh County Derry, eight kilometres to the west of Coleraine. The Patron Saint was Adamnan. St Patrick visited the area, and found that Christianity had already been established, possibly by Scottish settlers. In medieval times the, the parish was permanently linked to the Archdeaconry of Derry.

The Clothworkers'  Company established the Plantation village of Articlave in 1618-1621. In 1622, the church was reported to be in good order, having been repaired by them. The old church, being distant from the new village, was abandoned. It's ruins can still be seen to the west of Articlave. The present Church was built in 1691. This was extended by the addition of a pinnacled tower at the west end some time around 1800.


Between 1821 and 1825, the walls were raised, the chancel was built, and a vestry room was added to the tower. The sundial in the south wall was installed in 1823. On it is the inscription, "Tis greatly wise to talk with our past hours, and ask what report they bore to heaven" The windows in the north wall, and gallery, were added in the 1830s.


St Paul's Church is entered through a door in the south-west corner, which is in memory of Jane and Robert Johnston, 1991. There is a small round window over the door. The vestry door is in memory of Jonathan Wilson, 1991.


Inside, the church is a three-bay hall, with the gallery over the west end. The Baptistry is in the south-west corner. The pulpit on the left, the altar and reredos were all installed for the tercentenary celebrations of the church on the 2nd June 1991. The lectern and organ are on the right side of the nave. The chairs in the sanctuary were the gift of Mrs Macafee in 1953.

The three windows in the north wall each have diamond-paned glass with coloured insets. The first window depicts a Bible and a candle, the second, a lion and lamb, the third, a cross and crown. On the south side, there are also three windows. The first by the entrance, has opaque glass. The middle window has an inset depicting the stoning of St Stephen, and is in memory of Mr and Mrs W Kennedy, 1991 and the third window depicts St Paul in Athens in an inset, and commemorates Robert and Elizabeth Warke, 1991.


The east window has three lights and tracery. The middle section depicts St Paul in Miletus (Malta). The window commemorates James Coleman who died in 1934.

The memorial to those who gave their lives in the Great War is on the south wall. On the north wall, there is a memorial to Alexander Coleman who died in 1898, and to his wife and family. A brass plaque on the wall of the baptistry records renovations to the church for the tercentenary celebrations in 1991, which were made possible by a bequest from Miss E. Stinton.




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