Strean Presbyterian Church
Strean Presbyterian Church has been in existence since 1865 when Thomas Strean donated £8000 for some local people to form a new congregation and build a centre for worship. This congregation formed as a result of the 1859 Great Revival and a disagreement with the 1st Presbyterian Church over the appointment of a minister. Thomas Strean, a wealthy merchant, held a meeting with dissenters to discuss setting up a new congregation.
The beautiful Gothic-style building is built from locally quarried Scrabo stone, many buildings built with this can be found in the town centre of Newtownards. The church was designed by John Boyd of Belfast and built by John Hanna of Newtownards. Completed in 1867, its spire of 130 feet is the highest in the district and can be seen from miles around. Horatio Bonar preached the sermon when the church building was first opened in 1867. Eric Liddell of Chariots of Fire fame also preached here in the 1920s.
The building was damaged by an IRA bomb planted in Newtownards town centre in July 1993. The interior of the building was devastated with around £250,000 damage being done. The newly restored building was opened in March 1995.
The cache is a magnetic nano. It is not attached to the church itself or in the grounds of the church. Please take care in crossing the roads to the site as the roads around it can be quite busy at times, keep a close eye on children too. As this is an extremely public area ensure that you are very discrete in retrieving and replacing the cache. Also please put it back exactly where you got it from. You may want to move elsewhere to sign the log and then return to replace it. Parking is available nearby on the street. Please take note of any parking restrictions in force.