placenamesWhite House
An Teach Geal
The White House beside Belfast Lough combines surviving defensive fabric, archaeological evidence and a later history of community reuse.
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
- An Teach Geal · Irish · main form · validated name
- White House · English · main form
- Whitehouse · English · main form
Place & story
The fortified house
The White House’s surviving stone walls date principally to the seventeenth century. A rectangular main block has substantial circular flankers, whose small openings reflect the building’s defensive character. The official building record dates a timber window lintel to 1589–1624 through tree-ring analysis. Earlier documentary references exist, but they do not establish a precise construction date for all the standing fabric. [2]
Archaeology beneath the hall
During restoration in 2008, archaeologists investigated beneath and around the former Gospel Hall. Despite disturbance from that later use, features survived, including curved stone foundations within a flanker and earlier deposits beneath the hall. Some remains were protected in place while structural decisions were considered. The programme also brought more than 500 schoolchildren to the site, connecting excavation with local education. [3]
Preservation and new use
The building served as a Gospel Hall during the twentieth century before a preservation campaign secured its future. The White House Preservation Trust was formed in 2000, and restoration created a visitor centre interpreting the building and the Williamite and Jacobite wars. The operator’s history records transfer to Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council in 2015, followed by management through Dalaradia Cultural and Historical Society. [4]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Antrim
- Barony
- Belfast Lower
- Civil parish
- Carnmoney
- Coordinates
- 54.65897, -5.90778 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 61598 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — White House. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Whitehouse Bawn, HB21/07/003 · Historic Environment Division, Department for Communities
- The Whitehouse, excavation report 2008:043 · Johanna Vuolteenaho, ADS Ltd.
- About the Whitehouse · The White House in Dalaradia
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2021-05-26. How this page was prepared.