Aghadowey War Memorial listed

Back in December, a proposal came before Coleraine Borough Council from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency to delist the war memorial in Aghadowey, which is located on the Ballydevitt Road.

At the time many councillors objected to the proposal.

They highlighting the historical significance of the Aghadowey memorial, which is thought to have been one of the first memorials erected in Northern Ireland.

The granite structure dates back to the 1920’s.

At last Tuesday night’s Planning meeting, a letter from NIEA outlined that a ‘re-evaluation’ had taken place, and that the structure would be listed at Grade B2.

Welcoming the decision, Garvagh DUP councillor Michelle Knight-McQuillan said that many in the local community were upset by the proposal, and that this descision was ‘welcome news’.

The Aghadowey Memorial honours the 205 people from the parish who volunteered to fight in the war.

Of those 35 never returned home.

The memorial lists the names of those who died, whilst the names of all those who served in wars are also recorded on the rural memorial.