Key points
Location: A small cul‑de‑sac off Ballarat Street near Ravenhill Road in east Belfast.
Background: The surrounding streets were laid out by developers Mahaffy & Sawers during Belfast’s late‑19th‑century expansion. The Town Improvement Committee minutes of 22 September 1897 show that they requested the names “Flanders Street,” “Ballarat Street” and “Bendigo Street” (belfaststreetnames.com).
Australian theme: Ballarat and Bendigo were famous gold‑rush towns; the names reflect a wider fashion for imperial place‑names.
Background: the naming of Ballarat Street
During Belfast’s late‑19th‑century expansion, developers Mahaffy & Sawers sought approval for a cluster of new streets off Ravenhill Road. Minutes of the Town Improvement Committee dated 22 September 1897 record their request to name the streets “Flanders Street,” “Ballarat Street” and “Bendigo Street” (belfaststreetnames.com). These names referenced Australian places – Ballarat and Bendigo were gold‑rush towns – and were part of a wider fashion for imperial place‑names. Ballarat Street therefore dates from 1897 and was not accompanied by a “court” at that time.
Absence of Ballarat Court in mid‑20th‑century sources
A search through mid‑20th‑century Belfast street directories shows that Ballarat Court was not part of the original street layout and had not yet been created by the 1960s. For example, the 1951 Belfast Street Directory lists Ballarat Street “at 91 Ravenhill Road” with resident names but does not mention Ballarat Court (lennonwylie.co.uk). The 1955 directory again records Ballarat Street but no court (lennonwylie.co.uk), and the 1959 “List of All Belfast Streets” includes Ballarat Street without any court (lennonwylie.co.uk). Ballarat Street appears in the 1960 and 1967 lists, yet Ballarat Court does not. These omissions show that Ballarat Court was absent from the street network through the 1960s.
Evidence from later decades and contemporary records
By the late 1990s and early 2000s Ballarat Court is present in local address databases and news reports (for example, the Belfast News‑Letter of Thursday 10 June 1999 mentioned a resident of Ballarat Court).
Interpretation and timeframe
The evidence points to Ballarat Court being created after the 1960s but before the end of the 20th century. During the 1970s and 1980s the Northern Ireland Housing Executive undertook redevelopment schemes along Ravenhill Road, replacing older terraced housing with modern flats and short cul‑de‑sacs often called “courts.” Nearby St Kilda Court and Flinders Court were constructed during these schemes. It is likely that Ballarat Court was laid out as part of the same redevelopment, adopting its name from the adjacent Ballarat Street and continuing the Australian theme established in 1897.
Sources
Belfast Street Names website; Town Improvement Committee minutes, 22 Sept 1897 (belfaststreetnames.com).
1951 Belfast Street Directory (Lennon Wylie) (lennonwylie.co.uk).
1955 Belfast Street Directory (Lennon Wylie) (lennonwylie.co.uk).
1959 List of All Belfast Streets (Lennon Wylie) (lennonwylie.co.uk).