Listooder

Listooder is a hamlet and townland situated outside Crossgar towards both Ballynahinch and Saintfield in County Down, Northern Ireland. Listooder derives its name from the Irish word Lios an tSúdaire meaning "ring-fort".[1] It holds some new houses with a small working farm, missionary hall, Orange Lodge and non-subscribing Presbyterian church. There are nine houses in Listooder and 31 people living here according to the 2011 census with many more in the surrounding area.

Listooder Irish: Lios an tSúdaire
Looking down on Listooder
Location within County Down
Population	31 (2011 Census)
District	Down
County	County Down
Country	Northern Ireland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	DOWNPATRICK
Postcode district	BT30
Dialling code	028
Police	Northern Ireland
Fire	Northern Ireland
Ambulance	Northern Ireland
UK Parliament	Strangford
NI Assembly	Strangford

Features

A small river runs through Listooder which is a tributary of the Ballynahinch River, which leads into the Quoile River outside Downpatrick.

Grave stone in Listooder

Upon Listooder lies an old fort (hence lios) which sits on one of County Downs' highest drumlin hills. It was used as a look-out because of its vast 360° view across the Down Drumlins as far as the Mourne Mountains and down onto Listooder Hamlet which would have only held a farm then.

Less than half a mile outside Listooder, on the border of the two townlands of Listooder and Clontaghnaglar,[2] in a field along Abbeyview Road sits a gravestone with a cross engraved on it surrounded by a stone wall with a sycamore and beech tree.

On Abbeyview Road, there is also an old railway bridge that goes over the old Downpatrick-Belfast railway line that stopped functioning in 1959. During the world wars, children got off here and stayed at nearby houses for safety.

Buildings

• Built in 1787, Rademon Church is the 12th oldest Non-subscribing Presbyterian Church of Ireland. The congregation was founded by 1st Saintfield in 1713 and probably met in a simple wood and thatch construction lasting about 10 years. Their second meeting house was more substantial. Remains of its walls can still be seen on the site and lasted until the present church was built. Rademon was amongst the congregations that left the main presbyterian denomination (Synod of Ulster) during the second subscription controversy in the 1820s to join the Remonstrant Synod until the NSP church was formed in 1910.[3] Their church hall is beside it.
• An Orange hall can be found in the hamlet. Listooder Orange hall Founded in 1871 still remains to have orange men present with it. The orange hall used to hold a loyalist flute band known as Listooder True Blues.[4]
• Listooder Missionary Hall Established in September 1964 in conjunction with Faith Mission when Fred Orr of Acre Gospel Mission in Brazil was invited by Faith Mission to bring a missionary report. The hall is still in function and holds fortnightly youth fellowship and prayer meetings.[5]

People

A young Jim Allister QC at his home in Listooder, just outside Crossgar, Down.

• Jim Allister QC, leader of the Traditional Unionist Voice and former barrister, was born in Listooder lived there until he was 9 years old.[6]
• George Best, the professional footballer, spent his summer holidays as a kid at his relatives' summer house in Listooder.

Gallery

• 
  Listooder
• 
  Listooder Orange Hall
• 
  Rademon Church
• 
  Listooder Missionary Hall

References

1. "Placenames Database of Ireland". Loganin. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
2. Davies, Rosalind. "Kilmore Parish townlands". ancestry.com. rootsweb. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
3. "Rademon Church history". Rademon Church. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
4. True Blues, Listooder. "Listooder Flute Band".
5. Youth Fellowship, Listooder. "Listooder Missionary Hall". Retrieved 10 February 2012.
6. Claire, McNeilly. "TUV's Jim Allister: I was aghast to see terrorists sitting in government ... being advised by other terrorists". Belfasttelegraph.co.uk. Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 13 January 2018.