Originally a small village on the outskirts of Belfast, Sandy Row has played an important role in the history of the city, going back centuries.
As Belfast grew in the 17th century, the issue of access to fresh water became increasingly acute. The tidal nature of the Lagan Estuary meant that the River Farset was salt water as far as Castle Street, as was the River Lagan up to Stranmillis.
The Blackstaff River was also brine up to the point where the salt and fresh waters mixed and created a sandbank, beside a sand-strewn road leading to a small village. This became known as Sandy Row.
A fresh water scheme was proposed that involved diverting supplies from the Tuck-Mill dam, near Barrack Street, into a newly constructed ‘water house’ in Sandy Row. From there conduits pumped the water into three fountains in what would become Fountain Street.
Saltwater Bridge
The Blackstaff River previously flowed into the Lagan above the present-day Queen’s Bridge. This formed an estuary that extended as far as Sandy Row where, in the mid 1600s, the Great Bridge of Belfast was built. Later coming to be known as Saltwater Bridge, local tradition connects this bridge with the route taken by King William III on his journey to the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.
In the 1930s, the Boyne Bridge was built on the same site, with an archaeological survey in 2021 reporting that remnants of the 17th century bridge had been discovered, encased within its 20th century successor.
The Boyne Bridge itself then made way to enable development of Weavers Cross and Belfast Grand Central Station.
Ba shráidbhaile beag ar imeall Bhéal Feirste é Rae na Gainmhe ar dtús, agus bhí ról tábhachtach aici i stair na cathrach, a théann siar na céadta bliain.
De réir mar a d’éirigh Béal Feirste níos mó san 17ú haois, bhí saincheist na rochtana ar fhíoruisce thar a bheith tábhachtach. Bhí sáile in Abhainn na Feirste a fhad le Sráid an Chaisleáin, agus in Abhainn an Lagáin a fhad leis an tSruthán Mhilis mar gheall ar thaoide Inbhear an Lagáin.
Bhí sáile in Abhainn Bheara a fhad leis an áit ar bhuail an tsáile leis an fhionnuisce lena chéile le hoitir ghainimh a chruthú, in aice le bóthar a bhí clúdaithe le gaineamh i dtreo sráidbhaile beag. Tugadh Rae na Gainmhe (Sandy Row) air seo.
Moladh scéim fionnuisce leis an tsoláthar a atreorú ó dhamba an mhuilinn ramhraithe, in aice le Sráid na Beairice, isteach sa ‘teach uisce’ nua-thógtha ar Rae na Gainmhe. Caidéalaíodh an t-uisce i seolphíobáin ón teach isteach go trí fhuarán ar Shráid an bhFhuarán, agus is mar sin a fuair an tsráid a hainm.
Droichead an Tsáile
Ritheadh Abhainn Bheara isteach go hAbhainn an Lagáin os cionn Dhroichead na Banríona tráth. Chruthaigh sé seo an inbhear a chuaigh a fhad le Rae na Gainmhe, áit ar tógadh an Droichead Mór i lár na 1600í. Tugadh Droichead an tSáile air ina dhiadh sin. De réir traidisiún áitiúil, chuaigh Rí Liam III an bealach seo ar a thuras chuig Cath na Bóinne sa bhliain 1690.
Sna 1930í, tógadh Droichead na Bóinne ar an tsuíomh chéanna. Fuarthas amach i suirbhé seandálaíochta in 2021 go raibh iarsmaí den droichead ón 17ú haois taobh istigh den droichead nua.
Ansin rinne Droichead na Bóinne an bealach d’fhorbairt Chros na bhFíodóirí agus Mhórstáisiún Lárnach Bhéal Feirste.