Belfast Charitable Society

13/10/2026

This Black History Month, we continue to explore the complex and often challenging stories that have shaped our past.

We have never shied away from our conflicted history - that for every member of Belfast Charitable Society who benefited financially from slavery, there was another who actively campaigned against it.

Thank you to the Irish News for featuring some of these fascinating characters from our past in today’s paper. We encourage you to pick up a copy or read online here: https://www.irishnews.com/entertainment/black-history-month-for-every-belfast-charitable-society-member-who-benefited-from-slavery-another-fought-against-it-CFQXNYMA4JAMNCSTPIDE6HTL7E/

As part of our Black History Month programme, we are also delighted to welcome Dr Jonathan Wright to Clifton House for a fascinating talk exploring Ulster’s connections with the wider eighteenth-century Atlantic World.

The talk will look beyond the familiar historical narratives to explore the fragmentary stories of some of the Africans known to have come to Ulster during this period, helping to shed light on lives and experiences that are often overlooked.

When: Monday 26 October, 1pm
Where: Clifton House or online via Zoom

Tickets are limited.
Book online here: https://cliftonbelfast.com/events/africans-and-the-atlantic-world-in-eighteenth-century-ulster/

Irish News

07/10/2026

This is Clifton Street Cemetery, one of the oldest burial grounds in Belfast. There are as many as 15,000 people buried here.

Opened in 1797 by the Belfast Charitable Society, it was known as a ‘New Burying Ground worthy of the citizens of Belfast’. And so here you will find, cheek-by-jowl, Belfast’s elite alongside Belfast’s paupers, all provided a place to be buried regardless of status.

Clifton House Belfast will run their final Clifton Street Cemetery tour of the year this Friday 9 October at 1.30p.m (before they move to their darker cemetery tours for Halloween 🕸🦇).

Expert guides will be able to tell you stories of those, rich and poor, buried here. A fascinating glimpse into Belfast's past.

Book online here at cliftonbelfast.com/events/

05/10/2026

*Happy World Teacher Day*

Education has always been an important part of Belfast Charitable Society’s work.

When children were first admitted to the Poor House, the Society quickly appointed its first Schoolmaster and Schoolmistress, William and Mrs Mawhinney, in 1776 to oversee their “government and instruction”.

Education was also central to the life of Mary Ann McCracken, who taught for over 40 years and championed education for girls and women.

That commitment continues today. Last year Belfast Charitable Society funded and developed 'One House: Two Stories', a KS2 resource to support teachers in the classroom and support class based learning by introducing primary school pupils to the history of Clifton House and the life of Mary Ann McCracken.

Over the course of the last 12 months, we are delighted to learn that more and more local schools are now using the resource in their classrooms, exploring our history through timelines, role play, discussion and art.

If you work in a primary school, and would like to hear more about this free classroom resource, please contact [email protected].

Clifton House Belfast Mary Ann McCracken Foundation

01/10/2026

📖 Stories from the Archive 📖

01/10/2026

Belfast Charitable Society is Belfast's oldest charity, however our story reaches far beyond this city.

To help us to tell our global story, as well as recognise Black History Month, we have welcomed two new portraits into the historic boardroom of Clifton House Belfast, those of Olaudah Equiano (1745-1797) and Frederick Douglass (1818-1895).

Our up coming lunchtime talk (Monday 26 October, 1pm) for Black History Month will look at Olaudah's visit to Belfast as a starting point and reflect on Ulster's connections with the wider eighteenth-century Atlantic World. Historian Dr Jonathan Wright will also explore the fragmentary stories of some other Africans who are known to have come to Ulster at this time.

Find out more, and book online at CliftonBelfast.com

Mary Ann McCracken Foundation

25/09/2026

This week our board members met at one of our funded projects, ABC Health & Leisure Trust , who kindly facilitated a tour of the building and gave an update on their progress.

Belfast Charitable Society funds a development manager to implement the business plan for this centre - creating jobs, providing training, and overseeing activities to enhance efficiency and sustainability.

Our board were extremely impressed with the scale, quality and use of the building. A fantastic resource for the local community.

22/09/2026

Miss Young was a cousin of Martha McTier and her brother, Dr William Drennan. Her brother Hamilton had made his fortune in New York, and when he died in 1799, Miss Young inherited his wealth.

Martha McTier worked hard to ensure that, in her words, “Old Miss Young’s” fortune eventually passed to Dr Drennan. It enabled him to retire, and he inherited Cabin Hall, Miss Young’s home.

Miss Young’s fortune was clearly substantial. Records at PRONI show that she left £800 in trust for Penelope Rogers and £2,000 for Amelia Lindsay, as well as money and property to other family members.

And she didn’t forget the Poor House. In October 1799 she donated £100 towards its work, and in her will she left a further £100 to the Belfast Charitable Society.

It’s fascinating to see how one woman’s generosity connects so many of the people and stories surrounding the Poor House.

21/09/2026

The Great Place North Belfast project are looking for a project assistant to support their heritage activities.

Deadline for applying for this exciting heritage position is this Friday, 25th September 2026.

Fancy joining our team?
We have an exciting opportunity to join our team, with applications now open!

If you are passionate about heritage and community archiving and would like to be a part of our work, we'd love to hear from you.

Find the full job description and details on how to apply here: https://www.communityni.org/job/project-assistant-heritage

Closing date: Noon, Friday 25th September

18/09/2026

Today is International Equal Pay Day, a campaign that Mary Ann McCracken, and her sister Margaret, if alive today, would have got behind. The two sisters would have typically been ‘kept ladies’ and provided for by their brothers. However, it is testament to the sister that they established their own muslin business in an age where employment opportunities for women were slim.

The sister’s business did relatively well, however things were not always easy. During tougher times, Mary Ann continued to ensure that her workers were paid fairly for the work they did, even when it directly impacted on her own life.

As an organisation that has been tackling poverty and disadvantage since 1752, Belfast Charitable Society’s commitment to fair wages is also deeply rooted in our history. For more than 270 years we have recognised that helping people move out of poverty requires more than opportunity alone – it requires work that is valued and fairly rewarded.

That belief continues to guide us today. Belfast Charitable Society is proud to be not only a Real Living Wage Employer but also Northern Ireland’s first accredited Real Living Wage Funder.

08/09/2026

Today marks International Literacy Day (ILD) and the Belfast Charitable Society, like other welfare organisations, believed that education was the best means to stop the cycle of poverty by giving children the knowledge and skills to make a living for themselves when they were older.

Like other charitable institutions during this period, the 3R’s (reading, writing and arithmetic) were taught to the Poor House children as well as religious education and vocational skills. However, Belfast Charitable Society was innovative in the education of children within Clifton House.

Mary Ann McCracken herself recorded that some of the girls were taught French; boys going to the navy were taught navigation skills; and music was taught to all. This highlights how the Belfast Charitable Society used education to prepare children for their future apprenticeships and ultimately break the cycle of poverty.

Today, the Belfast Charitable Society continues to support literacy and education projects, recently match funding a new Read for Good bookcase for the Royal Victoria Hospital for Sick Children in Belfast.

Children in hospital are often among the most disadvantaged learners, illness disrupts education, isolates them from normal childhood, and can compound family pressures.

Read for Good brings comfort, distraction, and joy through vibrant mobile bookcases filled with brand-new, carefully selected books and regular visits from professional storytellers. These resources reach children at their bedside, including those who are tube-fed, undergoing long-term treatment, or living with complex disabilities. A fantastic resource which is the Society is delighted to support.

Clifton House Belfast Mary Ann McCracken Foundation