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Belfast Magazine
Another local public house which seems to have fallen for this false history is Kelly's Cellars. A few years ago they had a blue plaque placed on their building by the Ulster History Circle which states that the Society of United Irishmen met there. Could be true but it's highly unlikely. I have e-mailed the Ulster History Circle several times asking for their source material but all my e-mails were ignored. There are quite a few bars in Belfast claiming to be the oldest ranging from Kelly's Cellars through to
McHugh's with their amazing Established in 1711 date for a modern building. If I were to say which was the oldest then it would have to be White's Tavern in Wineseller Entry. Where Kelly's Cellars is situated was the Catholic section of the old town and the Belfast United Irishmen were not only all Presbyterian but also Freemasons. It could be argued that they went to Kelly's to meet with members of the Defenders who were Catholic and who sided with the United Irishmen during their 1798
Rebellion. However the Defenders were a rural organisation and there was never a branch in Belfast. The United Irishmen set themselves up in a small tavern just of High Street but after that the meetings were held in private as well as in masonic rooms. There is no evidence that the United Irishmen ever went near Kelly's Cellars never mind met in it but I'll conclude with the words of Pieter Geyl. Imagination plays too important a role in the writing of history.