The minutes of the Town Improvement Committee of Belfast Corporation on 25 November 1896 indicate the naming of two new streets off the Stranmillis Road: St Ive’s Gardens and St Albany’s Gardens. St Alban’s Gardens. The naming of St Alban’s Gardens was at the request of the owner Mr R. J. McConnell. Minutes, Improvement Committee, 11th November 1896.The Belfast And Province Of Ulster Directory 1899. The Belfast And Province Of Ulster Directory 1900. Named for Saint Alban who is considered the firstrecorded British Christian martyr and is believed to have been beheaded in the Roman city of Verulamium, which is modern St. Albans.