Dundonald: 5 Haunted Places to Visit

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Dundonald, Northern Ireland has many dark and haunted sites, says JANET QUINLIVAN

Dundonald: 5 Haunted Places to Visit 1

The town of Dundonald is located around 8 miles east of Belfast city in Northern Ireland. It was named after Dun Donall in the 12th Century but the area actually dates back as far as Neolithic times.

It is home to the famous Stormont building and Stormont castle and has been home to even the Normans like John De Courcey.

Dundonald has the largest Norman Motte still standing in all of Ireland and although the man-made mound still remains the actual fort is long gone. The park land around it is now known as the ‘moat’.  With this amount of history it is no wonder this small townland is haunted!

Cleland Mausoleum, Dundonald Church of Ireland Graveyard, Dundonald, County Down

The Cleland Mausoleum, Dundonald


In the graveyard of Dundonald’s Church of Ireland stands the Cleland Mausoleum, the tallest known tomb in Northern Ireland. It was built by Eliza Cleland in 1842 for her husband Samuel who died tragically at the age of 34 being crushed by a falling wall. He remains in the tomb with his parents. There have been accounts in the graveyard in which it stands of disembodied whispering around the tomb area.

The Greenaway, Dundonald

There was an old railway line that runs from Belfast through Dundonald, Comber and Newtownards all the way to Downpatrick. The railway opened in 1850 and closed in 1950. Since then it has been tarmacked and the long line is now called ‘The Greenway’ and is used by many cyclists and dog walkers.

Many residents in the area claimed to have heard the ‘ghost train’ late at night. I have even heard this train myself at around midnight on a very still night. No wind or rain and very clearly me and several other members of the C.A.P.R.A paranormal investigation team heard the loud squeal of the steam train horn and the faint chug of the train in the tracks. Head down for a walk one night along this scenic route and see if you hear it too, but beware the area has no lighting and is pitch black.

Kemp Stones, Greengraves, Dundonald

Along the Greengraves road off into a field stands a Norse Burial Portal (Kemp stones). There are five lower stones supporting a roof stone with the burial chamber far below. Several locals for generations have claimed to see the spirit of a headless drummer boy who walks around the stones and also of disembodied whispers which are not legible. Perhaps it’s the voices of Norsemen they hear far below the earth.

Murder Bridge, Dundonald

Between Dundonald and Craigantlet lies a bridge known on maps as ‘Murder Bridge’. Quite a few people have seen either a man alone or a man and a woman wander across the road dressed in 19th century clothing and then disappear on the other side. It’s been reported in a book called ‘The Most Unpretending of Places’ that there was a man called Thomas O’Gilmore murdered on that bridge by Scotsmen in the early 1800’s. Perhaps he and his wife still walk around the place of his murder, looking for a way to escape.

Bridge near Clandeboye Lodge, County Down

Not far from Murder Bridge is another bridge between Newtownards and Crawfordsburn very close to the Clandeboye Lodge. Several people have seen a man in a long black cloak with black clothes beneath, his trousers tucked in his boots, standing on the side of the road.

After a call with the Clandeboye Estate it’s been confirmed on their records (the Blackwood family have owned it since 17th century) that a highwayman was indeed hung from that bridge once caught for his crimes. Is this his damned spectral being haunting the bridge forever?

5 COMMENTS

  1. I was once walking up Comber Rd towards Ballybeen Estate when a figure crossed the Comber Rd and vanished, I believe there was an old bridge where this occurred, ( not Grahames Bridge ) but down before the entrance to the Moat Park. I was probably 13 or younger when this happened, so nearly 50 years ago

  2. on the subject of murder bridge going by the mentioned book it was a man who had a pig in a bag that started panicing while said man was sat upon the bridge which caused him to fall and break his neck.

  3. There is one section on the greenway between quarry lane and wjere it ends on the old dundald road that is spooky, I cut up this way to get home after a shandy but every time there is one spot and i can near enough pin point it the temperature just seems to drop no matter what the ambient temperature is i have experienced it summer and winter, if you go from the intersection of quarry lane and freeway keep heading towards old staion masters house about 200-250 meters its like walking through a door and it seems to last for about 100 meters.

  4. Thanks for the Story Richard, that would have been where the old railway bridge was I think. Paul, can you contact me via Facebook or maybe check out County Antrim Paranormal Research Association Facebook page? We investigated the Greenway and it was at that exact place that we caught some amazing evidence. It’s been posted on our public page if either of you would like to listen to it! 😀

  5. i was walking my dog a couple of weeks ago at the Hanwood Centre when we got to the football pitch about 2 minutes past 7 in the morning there is a path which leads up to the comber walkway . The dog began to behave very strange started to glare over at the walkway and his head down as if he was ready to pounce , his tail went poker straight and he froze in that position i had a torch with me and i put it up over to the walkway and i got a vision of something quiet strange pure white and the dog was glaring at it .After a minute or so it moved off left like floating and disappeared the dog then lifted his head and dropped his tail turned round and looked at me as if to say whatever that was is now away , i can only imagine it must have been paranormal activity of some sort.

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