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
Rupert Mitford, 6th Baron Redesdale Rupert Mitford, 6th Baron Redesdale Rupert Mitford, 6th Baron Redesdale (born 18 July 1967) is a British hereditary peer, Liberal Democrat politician and member of the prominent Mitford family. Mitford was educated at Milton Abbey and Highgate School, before going up to Newcastle University, where he graduated with the degree of B.A.. He succeeded his father as 6th Baron Redesdale, of Redesdale, Co. Northumberland, in 1991. Following the removal of hereditary peers' automatic right to a seat in Parliament by the House of Lords Act 1999, the Liberal Democrats took advantage of an offer from the New Labour Government for