Draperstown

Coordinates: 54°47′37″N 6°47′03″W / 54.79361°N 6.78417°W / 54.79361; -6.78417

Draperstown (locally [ˈdRɛpərzˈtəun] or [ˈdriːpərzˈtəun]) is a village in the Sperrin Mountains in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is situated in the civil parish of Ballynascreen and is part of Magherafelt District Council. It is part of the Church of Ireland parish of Ballynascreen and the Catholic parish of Ballinascreen. It is within the former barony of Loughinsholin. The village had a population of 1,638 people in the 2001 Census.

Name

Draperstown had its name bestowed upon it in 1818 by the Worshipful Company of Drapers, which had previously named Moneymore as Draperstown.

Prior to this however the settlement was originally known as "Borbury" (from Irish: Bóthar Buí, meaning "yellow road"). It was then recorded as being called the "Cross" in 1813 and "Moyheelan" in 1821.

Despite the name given to it by the Drapers' company, locals continued to commonly refer to the settlement with a variety of names: