They are getting hands on experience in learning about their local area
Pupils from eight Belfast schools have helped unearth the remains of a 19th century house during a community archaeology dig.
The dig at Woodvale Park, organised by Queen’s University Belfast, is helping children to unlock the history of their local area. The primary six and primary seven children from local schools have been working alongside archaeologists from Queen’s and members of the community.
Aside from markings on some ordnance survey maps, very little is known about Woodvale House, which was the residence of Reverend Octavius Glover. Records show that the land was taken over by Belfast Corporation in 1888 to create what is now Woodvale Park.
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They have now found elements of a path, which is from the early development of the park. Beneath this, they also found potential features of the 19th century house, including pottery, prehistoric flint and coins.
The two-week excavation was organised by the Community Archaeology Programme Northern Ireland (CAPNI) and funded by a grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Speaking to Belfast Live at the site, Dr Heather Montgomery from Queen’s said: “On the first edition ordinance survey map, there’s a house in this area named Glenvale. By the second edition, the name changes to Woodville.
“We have identified the owner of Woodville House as Rev Octavius Glover, who resided here and had this place in glorious condition with beautiful gardens. In 1887, the Belfast Corporation put a call out to this area for the need to acquire some land to create leisure space for the emerging part of the city.
“This industrial side of Belfast was hugely developing, we’ve got foundries coming in, the mills, and factories developing. Thousands of people moved into the area, and they needed somewhere to socialise and relax – creating the need for park land.
“The site was acquired by Belfast Corporation and opened to the public on August 18, 1888, so it’s only in living memory this site has been known as a park.”
Heather added: “The dig has been a great opportunity for the pupils and the wider community to investigate the development of the Shankill District and Belfast as a whole.
“The school children all took part in workshops at the Spectrum Centre, which taught them the basics of archaeology. It’s fantastic to see them getting into the outdoors, working with our archaeologists and uncovering artefacts.
“We’ve also had lots of local people from the community here and together we have been able to get a real insight into the park’s hidden history.”
Jill Black, principal of Black Mountain Primary School, one of the schools taking part in the two-week long dig, said it has been an invaluable chance for the children to get hands on in learning about the area’s history.
She said: “Queen’s have been working on the Shankill Road for quite a number of years now, and we’re part of an early learning community in the primary schools. Through the Shankill Partnership we’ve been invited along to join in these activities.
“The kids were in the Spectrum Centre last week with the archaeologists looking at what archaeology is and how it works. They came back today to get stuck in and do it themselves, which has been unbelievable for them, they’re absolutely loving it.
“It’s so good for their learning. The children love learning outside and we like to get them out as much as possible to learn about the world around them and their local community. This is perfect, as they never would have known there was a house here.
“They’d probably come down here to play, but not know about the history of it. You never know, some of these children might grow up to be archaeologists and they’re getting a little snapshot of it.
“They’ll be using this park in five years’ time saying to their friends ‘I was here digging’ and they’ll be able to talk about what they’ve found.”
Emmie, a primary seven pupil at Black Mountain Primary School says it has been “really exciting”.
She said: “Myself and my friends have found lots of artefacts like slag, which came from crushed up iron and also some flint, which was used to build fires and light the house. It’s been a really fun day and it felt so good to be outdoors digging for artefacts.”
Ollie, who is also a pupil at Black Mountain Primary School added: “It’s been very interesting, and I really enjoyed digging and finding out more about history.”
Video by Belfast Live videographer Harry Bateman.
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