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To celebrate the bank holiday, Newry and Mourne Museum are looking back at the origins of bank holidays and how they were celebrated in the local area. The first official bank holidays were listed in the Bank Holiday Act of 1871 which was introduced by Sir John Lubbock, a politician and banker. The Act recognised four days in England, Wales, and Ireland, which were Easter Monday, Whit Monday, the first Monday in August and December 26th if that day fell on a weekday. Good Friday and Christmas Day were already seen as holidays in England, Wales and Ireland and therefore were not included in the Act. The Act was repealed in 1971 which paved the way for the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971, which is still used to this day as a guide to bank holidays.
Additional bank holidays may also be created in line with royal events. For example, in 2002, there was a special holiday on Monday 3 June to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II. The Spring bank holiday was moved from 27 May to 4 June to create a four-day weekend. The Golden Jubilee was also extremely significant for Newry as it was one of two towns in Northern Ireland, Lisburn being the other, to be given City Status. A charter granting City Status to Newry was presented by the Queen to Cllr. Frank Feely, then Deputy Chairperson of the former Newry and Mourne District Council at Hillsborough Castle. Other events in Newry included a sports day at Windsor Hill Primary School, a parade through Newry and a church service at St. Mary’s Parish Church. A Golden Jubilee exhibition was also held at Newry and Mourne Museum, which was then located in the Sean Holywood Arts Centre.
Many local industries saw the benefit of the bank holidays particularly the transport and retail industry. The Newry and Armagh Railway joined the Great Northern Railway (Ireland), known as the GNRI in 1879, and the Newry and Warrenpoint network in 1886. This connection helped promote Warrenpoint as a seaside town and make it popular for those on holiday and single day excursions. The 1924 excursion schedule to Warrenpoint recorded 39,145 passengers visiting during the summer holiday period. Although not officially recognised as a bank holiday until 1926, one of these excursions was for the Twelfth Demonstration, which appears to have been held in Warrenpoint that year. Orange lodges from the Leitrim, Ballyward, Ballyroney and Katesbridge areas, a total of 1,178 people, are recorded as travelling to the seaside town.
Created in July 1928 and revived in the 1960s, Newry Shopping Week was designed to promote goods manufactured in Newry and to advertise the town’s shopping facilities. During this time, streets in the town were decorated with bunting, flags, and banners. Events included an industrial parade which comprised floats from local businesses. In 1968 Newry held its Shopping Week during the May bank holiday which hosted several events such as concerts, fashion shows, and exhibitions. Other notable bank holiday events include the May Day Parade hosted on Saturday 1st May 1976.
Christmas and New Year bank holidays also provided a great opportunity for local talent to showcase their acting abilities and were typically celebrated with a pantomime performance to help foster the holiday cheer. Dating back from the early 1900s, Newry has hosted many pantomimes produced by P. J. McKay, Frank Hanna, Liz Boyle, Arthur Burns and Charlie Smyth. They continue to be performed annually.
The Museum is currently offering free tours of the main exhibition galleries on Wednesdays at 2.00 pm. These must be booked in advance by calling our Education Officer at 0330 137 4422.
Newry and Mourne Museum is open Tuesday – Saturday 10.00 am – 4.30 pm. Please call 0330 137 4422 or email museums@nmandd.org for further information.
Visit their website at www.visitmournemountains.co.uk
