The building served a Baptist Congregation from around 1864 to around 1967.
The original congregation was formed as a result of the outpouring of blessing that resulted from the 1859 revival.
The first Pastor was a Mr David MacCrory (1821-1887). Mr MacCrory was a Dromara man, and had become a Baptist around 1862-1863 while himself exercising a fruitful preaching and visitation ministry in the surrounding area.
He was baptised by Pastor William S. Eccles who had taken charge of Banbridge Baptist Church in 1859.
Above: Pastor David & Mrs Susan MacCrory
Mr MacCrory used the barn of a local farmer called Mr Dodd as a preaching station, and according to a letter written by Mr W.S. Eccles dated 14th February 1863 meetings held in it were crowded, especially on Sunday evenings.
Mr MacCrory was recognised as the Pastor of the Church on 10th September 1863.
A Mr Samuel Rea of 'Derrynale' then donated ground for a chapel and a manse.
The building work had commenced in February 1864. By June 1864 the church had 50 members.
The walls and roof were up by September 1864 at a cost of 200 pounds and the membership was by then 70.
It had no floor laid at first and the congregation had to put up with sitting on planks supported on stones!
In August 1867 the church had 100 members.
In May 1873 Mr MacCrory was preaching at 8 outlying stations and holding 7 weekly services.
In October 1874 the 7 outstations and the Derryneil chapel had a combined congregation of around 600 people.
(It is known that Annsborough, Ballykeel and Drumadonald were among these 7 outstations).
Mr MacCrory delivered farewell addresses in December 1877 as he prepared to take up the pastorate of the Coleraine Church on 13th January 1878. He resigned from the Coleraine Church on 17th December 1879 and moved to the USA to take the pastorate of First Baptist Church of Mount Washington, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in September 1880. The church there is still thriving:
http://mtwashingtonbaptistchurch.org
He served there as Pastor until his death in November 1887.
From 1878 the work in Derryneil was overseen by Mr Swaine, the Pastor of Great Victoria Street Church in Belfast. He supplied gifted young men connected with his church to preach in Derryneil.
From 1885 a Mr Francis J Ryan had charge of Derryneil and 5 other 'mission-stations'. He reduced his responsibilities to Lurgan and Ballykeel by 1887.
By November 1889 a Mr R.W. McCullough was mentioned as pastor of Derryneil.
The Baptist Union handbook of 1896 records the pastor as being George Rock who was inducted in 1891. In 1896 the church had 37 members, 2 Sunday school teachers and 16 'scholars'. The Irish Times of 29th and 30th 1900 mention the presence of Pastor George Rock of Derryneil Baptist at the Baptist Union May meetings held at the Phibsborough and Harcourt Street Church premises in Dublin from Mon 28th to Thursday 31st May 1900. In the 1901 census George Rock was living in 27 Salisbury Street, Belfast. He was aged 70 and was a 'missionary'. His wife 'Tillie' (Matilda Holden) was 48 in 1911 and they had been married for 29 years. They had been married in Taylorstown Baptist Church (Grange) Ballymena on 13th June 1882. They had 5 children, Martha (a tailoress aged 27); Minna (aged 26), George (aged 23, in the 'linen business'); Ernest (aged 18, a clerk); and Elsie aged 14. Minna and George had been born in Co. Westmeath and Ernest and Elsie in Co. Down. In the 1907 and 1908 Belfast street directories George Rock, 'scripture reader' was living at 27 Salisbury Street (off the Dublin Road) in Belfast. It is likely that he was pastor of the Athlone and Moate churches in the 1880s as his children were born in Westmeath. (Pastor Rock is buried in the churchyard at Derryneil)
The front page of the 'St. Lawrence Plaindealer' (Canton, New York) of Tuesday, 4th May 1909 mentions the arrival of the Rev. F.J.W. Burton who had 'until recently been Pastor of the Baptist Church at Derryneil, Ireland'. It also says that prior to that he had been engaged in mission work in London.
Headed notepaper from the early 1900s gives the Pastor as H. Kane, Derryneil House, Castlewellan, Co. Down, the Treasurer as H. Henderson, Ballybrick Rathfriland and the Secretary as S. Tufts, Tullynasoo, Kilcoo P.O.
From 1925-1934 Frank H. Forbes, Pastor of the Ballykeel Church, also had responsibility for Derryneil.
In the mid 1930's Derryneil was one of a number of small churches for which Pastor Shields of Kilkeel was responsible. William E. Beatty assisted Pastor Shields with the preaching in Derryneil and other places before becoming Pastor in Killyleagh in 1938. Pastor Beatty and his wife are buried in the graveyard at Derryneil.
From 1942-1954 Samuel C. Thompson was Pastor of Both Ballykeel and Derryneil.
From 1956-1967 R. Gordon McClements was Pastor of Ballykeel with responsibility for Derryneil.
In 1967 responsibility for Derryneil passed to the Banbridge Church. The following account is from the autobiography of Pastor Sam Simpson ('Nine Decades of Blessing', 2009), who Pastored the Banbridge Church from 1964-1971:- "In late 1967 I was approached by a representative of the Baptist Union regarding a little church in the district of Derryneil which is about twelve miles from Banbridge and not too far from Newcastle. At one time this had been a thriving Baptist Church with a settled Pastor. However, over the years numbers went down until there was no membership. Fortunately the door was kept open for a gospel service each Sunday evening and the work had been operating for a number of years under the direction of the late Pastor Gordon McClements, who was then Pastor of Ballykeel Baptist Church. Pastor McClements now felt it was time for him to relinquish this responsibility and so the Union committee wondered if we in Banbridge would consider taking it under our wing. After discussing the matter with our office bearers we felt it would be good to take on this new venture. However, as I had a very busy timetable in Banbridge, I felt I could not give Derryneil all the attention it would require, and so I thought of a person who would be suitable to take charge of this work. His name was Kenneth Stewart, a good member of the Banbridge Church. I contacted him and he agreed to take up the work in Derryneil. If any person was dedicated to the Lord's work, Kenneth proved that he was the man. It has not been an easy task, but Kenneth has remained faithful to his calling for over forty years."
(We are grateful to "To Each His Task" - The Story of Ballykeel Baptist Church, by J.R. Grant (Outlook Press, Rathfriland 1984) for much of the above information).
The building at Derryneil has continued to be used for evangelistic services since then.
Many famous preachers have preached here including W.P Nicholson on 2nd June 1925.
