We are looking forward to the next of our 350th Anniversary Talks here at First Dunmurry. The next one will be in the Church on Thursday, 26th November 2026 at 7.30 pm, followed by refreshments in the Hall, everyone is welcome.
The speaker will be David S. Dunlop, a bookbinder and independent researcher, with a longstanding interest in aspects of Irish Presbyterian history. The title is:
Picking Apart & Reconstructing the Fanny Malcolm Archive – Conserving a Lifetime of Familial Endeavour.
David is currently working on conserving the family archive assembled by Fanny Malcolm which contains so much history related to the family and which is part of our Library collection. The Rev A.G. Malcolm was minister of Dunmurry from 1807 to 1808 when he moved on to Newry. Here he was an innovative and imaginative minister who among other things produced one of the first hymnbooks used by Non-Subscribing Presbyterian churches in 1811.
When our group visited Newry, Warrenpoint and Banbridge in August 2026 we visited the Old Meeting House Green in Newry where Rev Dr A.G. Malcolm is buried. The inscription is hard to read but this is his grave:
The inscriptions read:
“Sacred to the Memory of the REV ANDREW GEORGE MALCOLM, D.D. He devoted the powers of a cultivated mind to the Services of Religion, blending precept with example, faith with good works, knowledge with zeal, and eloquence with truth. He was an able and fearless advocate of the right of private judgment. Candid, firm and persevering. In every public and private duty, assiduous. In every social relation kind. His Charity embraced all denominations, and of all he enjoyed the esteem and love.”
“This Monument is erected by the Presbyterian Congregation of Newry, who, while they bow to the will of the Most High, deplore the loss of him who was during 14 years their beloved Pastor. Called to an early tomb – in the maturity of his powers: in the height of his usefulness – may this marble speak to future time, and stimulate the successive ministers and members of this congregation to follow his example and emulate his virtues. Born, 15th September, 1782. Died, 12th January, 1823.”
His son, also A.G. Malcolm, became the most notable medical doctor in mid-nineteenth-century Belfast. Another son, Rev James Malcolm was minister successively at Carrickfergus and Matthew Henry’s Chapel in Chester where he died in 1855. The Malcolm family grave is situated in the graveyard at Dunmurry:
A rarely seen portrait of Rev Dr A.G. Malcolm recently came to light in the form of a silhouette:
