Broughshane

Infobox UK place
official_name= Broughshane
irish_name= Bruach Sheáin
local_name="Garden Village of Ulster"
map_type= Northern Ireland
latitude= 54.893611
longitude= -6.206111
population= 2,364 (2001 Census)
irish_grid_reference=
unitary_northern_ireland= Ballymena Borough
country= Northern Ireland
post_town= BALLYMENA
postcode_area= BT
postcode_district= BT42
dial_code= 028
constituency_westminster= North Antrim
lieutenancy_northern_ireland= County Antrim
static_

static_image_caption= Church and gate in Broughshane
belfast_distance= convert|24|mi|km|0 SSE
london_distance= convert|344|mi|km|0 SE

Broughshane (in Irish: "Bruach Sheáin", i.e. Shane’s dwelling) is a village within the Ballymena Borough Council area, in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is situated convert|3.5|mi|km|1 northeast of Ballymena and convert|13.8|mi|km|1 north of Antrim, on the A42 road. It had a population of 2,364 people at the 2001 Census.

The quaint pub, "The Thatch Inn", has a thatched roof and is a Grade A listed building. It was originally a planter’s house. The local Masonic Lodge used to meet upstairs in The Thatch. Now a Masonic Hall built in 1904 stands next to the pub.

Broughshane is known as the "Garden Village of Ulster". In 1994 the village was the winner of Ulster in Bloom, Britain in Bloom and Europe in Bloom. In 2007 the village was named as overall winner of the Britain in Bloom awards. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7015365.stm BBC report on winning the Britain in Bloom award] ]

Notable people

*Broughshane was the ancestral home of Sir George White VC, the most decorated soldier in the British Army and the hero of the Siege of Ladysmith. There is a memorial in the Presbyterian Church graveyard.
*His son, Captain James Robert "Jack" White, co-founded and drilled the Irish Citizen Army before the Easter Rising of 1916 and later went on to fight the Fascist Regime in the Spanish Civil War
*James Nesbitt, a well known actor was born in this town.

2001 Census

Broughshane is classified as an intermediate settlement by the [http://www.nisra.gov.uk/ NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA)] (ie with a population between 2,250 and 4,500 people).On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 2,364 people living in Broughshane. Of these:
*19.3% were aged under 16 and 23.6% were aged 60 and over
*48.6% of the population were male and 51.4% were female
*4.9% were from a Catholic background and 93.5% were from a Protestant background
*2.8% of people aged 16-74 were unemployed.

For more details see: [http://www.ninis.nisra.gov.uk/ NI Neighbourhood Information Service]

References

* [http://www.culturenorthernireland.org/town_Home.aspx?co=16&to=320&ca=0&sca=0&navID=1 Culture Northern Ireland]