16/08/2026
On Saturday August 15, we welcomed a large group of visitors from First Dunmurry NS Presbyterian Church and First Church Belfast, led by the Rev Dr David Steers to view the church and our graveyard at Old Meeting House Green. The group had earlier been to NSP churches in Warrenpoint and Newry, and dined in Banbridge before visiting the Masonic Hall in the town, which was built as a Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church just a number of years after our own church opened in 1846. This second building was later bought by the Masonic Order and dedicated a Masonic Hall in 1898.
Dr Steers gave a short history of the church building, and the visitors had an opportunity to look around, taking in our historic organ which sits high up opposite the top pulpit, the substantial balcony, the numbered pews, the unusual double pulpit, and the many pictures, memorials and photographs depicting times gone by. They also appreciated seeing the ancient graves, including that of Rev John Montgomery, first minister of the current church in Downshire Road; and the Rev Percival Godding, who spent six months in a German prisoner of war camp during World War One. Returning home safely, he was minister in Banbridge from 1920 until his death in 1953.
