St. Brigid's Church

The foundation stone for the present day Church was laid by Bishop James Naughton on 1st August 1931. The Church was dedicated to St. Brigid by Dr. Naughton on 23rd July 1933. The nave of the Church measures 110' by 30' and the transepts 27' by 30'. It has a high altar of Carara marble and pitch pine woodwork throughout.

The front part of this Church covers part of the site of the old Church. It was built with local stone from a quarry in Doonfeeney belonging to John (Tony More) Heverin. The gravel for the mix was quarried in Sweeney's pit in Ballyglass. The sand for plastering was also from this quarry. The Architect was William H. Beirne & Sons and the Contractors were Messrs. Kilcawley, Maloney and Taylor.

1950: Electric lighting was installed

1961: A new heating system was installed.

1970: A new boiler was put in

1974: A new pipe organ was purchased for the Church.

Early '70: The railing in front of the altar was taken away and a new altar was installed in front of the old one, which is still in place.

1994/5: Internal porches were installed inside the side doors.

1996: New lighting was installed in the Church grounds.

1997: New lighting and a new amplification system were installed in the Church.

2000/01: The pipe organ was refurbished and 32 stained glass windows (donated by parishioners in memory of departed loved one) were installed and were blessed by Bishop Thomas Finnegan on 15th June 2001.

Mass times are as follows: Monday - Saturday: 10.00a.m.

Saturday Vigil: 8.15p.m.   Sunday: 11.30a.m.

St. John's Church

The Church of Ireland 'St. John's, was built in 1810. It is the oldest building in the town and one of the finest examples of a cut stone building in the area.

Services are on Sundays at 9.00a.m. in Summer time and on Saturdays at 8.00p.m. in Winter time.

The Church cemetery has 18 headstones with the oldest dating back to 1865 and has the name Robert Crawford on it.

St. John's Hall, beside the Church, was built in 1847 as a soup kitchen in famine times.

The Presbyterian Church

The first Minister to this church, which is situated on the Glen Road, was the Rev. Michael Brannigan who was appointed to Ballinglen in 1848 and organised fundraising for the building of a Church. This was completed in 1850 and the Church was officially opened by the Rev. Dr. Cooke of Belfast. The original building had no steeple or ornamental design. In November 1864, the Church was damaged by fire. Rev. Brannigan had the building insured so re-building began almost immediately.

The new building had a schoolroom. A Steeple and living accommodation for the teacher were erected in 1876.

Having served the area for 24 years, Rev. Brannigan died in 1874, aged 58yrs, and his tombstone is in Ballinglen Churchyard.

The last marriage in this church took place in 1908 and the last Baptism in July 1930. The Church closed in 1959 and the Primary School attached to the Church was closed in the 1920's.