
Town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
Photo: Copy from map by Richard Bartlett, Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
Cookstown is a town in County Tyrone in Northern Ireland. The historic counties are no longer units of government, so Cookstown is now part of Mid-Ulster district, and in 2024 had a population of 12,600.
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RC church designed by the prolific Irish architect J J McCarthy and built 1858-60, with a soaring West Tower and spire. The interior (much altered in 1981) is dominated by a huge eastern window, and was renovated in 2010/11.
Grand mansion on the slopes above Ballinderry River, built 1801-03 to designs of John Nash over the burnt-out ruin of the 17th-century castle. It was bought by the present owners in 1922 for the princely sum of £100, and remains a private residence. Visit by pre-booked tour. There's a golf course on its grounds and a castle cafe. This building is not to be confused with Killymoon Bouncy Castles, which were not designed by Nash.
Called a fort, but this bosky mound was entirely ceremonial, with no defensive role. It's best documented as the place where the O'Neill kings of Tyrone were inaugurated, from the 11th to 16th century, though the earthwork is much older. The new king sat upon Leac na Rí, the royal flagstone, a boulder akin to Scotland's "Stone of Destiny", while his men waved a shoe above his head. In the 13th century the O'Neill court moved to Dungannon but ceremonial shoe-ins continued here to 1585. The Nine Years' War ended O'Neill rule and the English smashed the stone to smithereens (Irish smidiríní, which are even tinier than smiodar, fragments).
Picturesque all year round with shrub, butterfly and Japanese gardens, arboretum, ponds and mixed woodlands, with waymarked trails. The Manor was built in 1868 but derelict by the 20th century, and demolished after 1980. The shell of the ground floor and east tower survive, transformed into a Japanese garden. See Sleep for the campsite here, open mid-March to Oct.
Beetling was the last stage in the manufacture of linen, when it was pounded by wooden mallets or "beetles" to tense the fabric and give it a lustrous finish, which should last for the product's lifetime. In the 19th century this was replaced by other methods and Wellbrook, built in 1830, is the last working beetling mill in Ireland. It's in a picturesque wooded glen on the banks of the Ballinderry River, which powers its 16-ft water wheel.
A complex of megaliths dated circa 2000-1500 BC that became buried in bog, and came to light during peat cutting in the 1930s. There are seven stone circles, with low boulders though one is larger and filled with upright smaller stones in a "dragon's teeth" pattern. There are also ten stone rows and 12 cairns. The site is only partly excavated and there's probably much more of it still buried.
Plantation-era mansion, home of the Staples family 1620-2006. It was greatly extended (and the family financially over-extended) with Georgian and Victorian additions. It became derelict in the 20th century but was made over to a charitable trust and restored, Visit by pre-booked tour.
This beautiful manor house, built around 1680, was home to ten generations of the Lenox-Conynghams, an early Plantation family. It's been owned by the National Trust since 1957 and has a large Costume Museum in the former laundry. There are extensive woodland grounds.
All-you-can-eat buffet for a great price, popular restaurant with a great selection.
Trad home Ulster cooking.
Efficient central cafe serves no-nonsense grub.
Bar and grill, good Sunday carvery.
Irish restaurant, gets mixed reviews for food and service.
It's now a bar and doesn't serve food.
Bar, restaurant and night club. It includes Jailbird beer garden.
It'll be the bus you'll be waiting for here nowadays. Agreeable pub with beer garden, young crowd.
formerly Squealin' Pig
Friendly town centre pub.
Town centre pub often has live music, has rooms.
Sports bar often has live bands.
Well-run mid-range hotel with 62 en-suite bedrooms, Cellar Restaurant, bar, pool and hair & beauty salon.
Slick modern hotel in a Victorian house, consistently good reviews for food and service.
Decent mid-range place, often caters for weddings and funerals, and it's the food that earns the most admiring reviews.
Comfy welcoming B&B by Drum Manor park.
Cookstown's sights are scattered widely around the countryside with no public transport.
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