A Church Sandwich Traditional Cache
Cuilcagh: As the owner has not responded to my previous log requesting that they check this cache I am archiving it.
Regards
Cuilcagh - Volunteer Ireland Reviewer
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The Cache
The Cache container is a camoflaged container a bit bigger than a 35mm with just enough room for a logbook and pencil and FTF pin.
We have assured the custodians of the church that no damage would be done to the church by over keen cachers, so we have made it a bit easy by providing a good hint. Access to the cache is usually 24/7 except for Sunday between 10am-11.30am as the custodians hold a service near the front entrance of the church.
This Cache will bring you to St Joseph's Church Princes Dock Street. St Joseph’s church opened it’s doors in 1880, was assigned category B1 listing in 1979 and closed it’s doors in 2001. St Joseph's Church was designed by Timothy Heavy and completed on his death by his partner Mortimer H Thompson.
The architectural style of the church is early French gothic. The church consists of a nave, clerestory, a chancel and two side aisles. A tower and spire were added later. To the rear of the church in Pilot street, a four storey parochial house was added between 1879-1880. The church also once housed an altar designed by James Pearse of Dublin (father of 1916 Easter Rising leader Patrick Pearse). The church was built to cope with the demands of the growing catholic population in the docks area. Before the church was built, worshippers had been using a shed as the nearby St Patrick’s Church in Donegal street was full to capacity.
By the mid 1800s the docks area was a thriving port and up to 5,000 families lived in what was to become known as Sailortown, a network of red bricked streets. Most of these families had one or more family members working at the docks, on the ships or out at sea. St Josephs became not only a place of worship but a community hub, sandwiched amongst the dwellings and warehouses of the port. By the 1960’s housing in the area was in need of repair. However, the city planners believed that Sailortown was more valuable to them if it was flattened to make way for land that could be used to modernise Belfast’s road transport, i.e. build motorways.
All that remains of the original Sailor town buildings were four houses that still stand today in Garmoyle street, a few bars and St Joseph’s church. With it’s worshippers dispersed St Josephs closed it’s doors in 2001. A dedicated group of people led by Sailortown Regeneration Group, still campaign to restore St Joseph’s as a community hub and regenerate the Sailortown area. The SRG were successful in persuading the first social housing to be built in the area in over 150 yrs.
St Joseph’s today is now sandwiched between a social housing development on one side and a private residential development on the other. However as politicians seem intent in pumping money into projects on the other side of the docks, other buildings i.e. Pats Bar and The Rotterdam, that once escaped the bulldozers of the 60s now lie vacant, their future in the hands of once again, the planners and developers. For more information: www.sailortownbelfast.com
Access Details
You can drive right up to the cache location for a quick cache and dash. Please note that there are double yellow lines in force, for those of you planning to leave your cars and explore the area you would be best advised to avail of alternative car parking. There is limited parking during the day in Corporation square, from there the cache location is a short walk through Clarendon dock. This Cache takes in Route 93 of the cycle path. If travelling by train, the cache is just a short walk from Yorkgate station. Metro Bus services 61 and 64 travel to Corporation/Garmoyle Street, from here it's just a short walk. Sailortown is now sign posted as part of the Maritime trail from the Big Fish in Oxford Street. look out for the information boards.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
V yrsg zl pnc ba gur one ng gur onpx ba gur evtug unaq fvqr.
Gur pnpur vf nggnpurq gb gur npghny puhepu ohvyqvat.
Treasures
You'll collect a digital Treasure from one of these collections when you find and log this geocache:
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