placenamesCarr's Glen
Gleann Cheara
Carr’s Glen in north Belfast follows the Milewater Stream towards Cave Hill. Mill remains preserve its industrial past, while the local school’s history records another stage in the area’s growth.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Gleann Cheara · Irish · main form · validated name
- Carr's Glen · English · main form
Place & story
From print works to beetling mill
The Belfast Hills heritage survey traces several uses of Carr’s Glen Mill through historic mapping. It appears as print works in 1833, a flour mill in 1857 and Glencar Beetling Mill in 1901. Griffith’s Valuation recorded Henry Neeson occupying a house, flour and corn mills, a kiln and associated property. A 1907 postcard shows the mill and its large waterwheel beside the stream. Its changing uses connect the glen with both food production and textile manufacture. [2]
A school on Oldpark Road
Carr’s Glen Primary School’s own prospectus dates its opening to 1939. Its two-storey building was arranged around an early-years playground, with another play area facing the front. A later expansion of provision followed an Education Department decision in 2016 to approve a part-time nursery unit with twenty-six places. The prospectus records nursery provision beginning in September 2017, adding an earlier stage of education to the established primary school. [3] [4]
The stream and linear park
Carr’s Glen Linear Park forms part of Cave Hill Country Park and provides an approach from the Ballysillan Road area. Belfast City Council identifies the Milewater Stream and the mill remains alongside it as features of the route. The glen therefore retains a visible relationship between its watercourse and industrial site within the wider wooded landscape leading towards Cave Hill. [5]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Antrim
- Barony
- Belfast Upper
- Civil parish
- Shankill
- Coordinates
- 54.62411, -5.97152 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 135743 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Carr's Glen. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Belfast Hills Heritage Survey (2013), Carr’s Glen Mill, page 44 · Belfast Hills Partnership
- Carr’s Glen Primary School Prospectus: Our School · Carr’s Glen Primary School
- Weir approves establishment of a statutory nursery unit at Carr’s Glen Primary School, Belfast, 14 September 2016 · Department of Education, Northern Ireland
- Carr’s Glen Linear Park · Belfast City Council
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2021-05-26. How this page was prepared.