American General Store
The general store was a basic part of the economy of the early community. As emigrants flocked to the New World, the store provided a source of goods to isolated settlements.The general store was much more than that - it provided a market for local farm surplus which was used to barter for items ...

Blacksmith
Blacksmithing was a skilled occupation. As well as shoeing horses, making tools and equipment was an important aspect of the trade. As with other crafts, the number of blacksmiths peaked in the 1800s.Population and industry were rising and most products were locally made. However, as mass pr...

Blacksmiths Forge
The country blacksmith was of vital importance to the agricultural community, both as a farrier who shod and cared for horses and as a manufacturer and repairer of agricultural implements. The forge reproduced in the Folk Park is typical of those which were once found throughout rural Ulster.&nbs...

Blair's Printers, Strabane
The bookseller, stationer and printer, R J Blair, opened this printing establishment in the late 1870s.  It stood in Strabane, across the street from Gray’s printing shop.  By 1892, R J Blair’s boasted a wide variety of retail interests. As well as operating as a printer, st...

Block wheeled car
Block wheeled cars were a step up the evolutionary ladder from the slide car. Their wheels were made from three pieces of wood dowelled together and hooped with an iron tyre.  The tyre consisted of two parts and was nailed onto the wheel, although later they were sometimes sweated onto the w...

Campbell House
The Campbell House, or Aghalane House to give it its formal title, was built by Hugh Campbell in 1786, on a farm near Plumbridge in County Tyrone. Hugh placed two stone plaques above the front door, one bearing his name and the date of construction, and the other inscribed with an armorial of the...

Castletown National School
This National School was moved to the Ulster American Folk Park from the nearby townland of Castletown. The building is dated 1845, although records reveal that there was a school on the original site from the 1790s.In 1845 the 'Master' at Castletown School was Patrick Mulligan.  He taught t...

Centre for Migration Studies
As part of your visit, you are welcome to explore our Centre for Migration Studies with its Irish Emigration Database and Library. We are open Monday to Friday 10:30 am to 5:00 pm. The Ulster American Folk Park is closed on Mondays but the Centre is open to the public, with no ...

Conestoga Bells
Bells were a common adornment to the harness of the horse. They were held in an arch attached to the collar of the horse, containing three, four, five or six bells. They warned of the approach of the wagon and were also for decoration and allowed the horses to be found in the morning after being ...

Conestoga Wagon
The Conestoga type wagon was first built by German settlers in the Conestoga river valley region of Lancaster County, Eastern Pennsylvania, in the 1730s. German immigrants in the same area also gave us the Pennsylvanian long rifle and large wooden farm barns. The first Conestoga wagons, also kno...