Ballygowan period, and subsequent to the introduction of the Belfast & County Down Railway in 1850, that the village began to grow. Ballygowan railway station opened on 10 September 1858, but finally closed on 16 January 1950. After the railway closed in 1950 the village became an attractive "dormitory" town and the ensuing 50 years have seen rapid growth. On Monday, 15 September 2014, the remains of The Baron Bannside (better known as The Rev. Ian Paisley) were buried in the graveyard attached to Ballygowan Free Presbyterian Church. Lord Bannside was a former First Minister of Northern Ireland and a former
Brian Mulholland, 6th Baron Dunleath Brian Mulholland, 6th Baron Dunleath The Rt Hon. Brian Henry Mulholland, 6th Baron Dunleath, DL (born 25 September 1950), is a Northern Irish hereditary peer and former politician. His ancestral seat is Ballywalter Park, a country house at Ballywalter on the Ards in County Down. Lord Dunleath was educated at Eton College. In 1997 he succeeded to the title of Baron Dunleath and took his seat in the House of Lords. He was excluded from the House in 1999 with most of the other hereditary peers with the House of Lords Act. He is a Deputy Lieutenant of County Down.