22/05/2026
‘Family serving family since 1926’. A motto that has served Douglas Funeral Directors and the people of Ballynahinch for 100 years.
Now 100 years later, Douglas Funeral Directors would like to take this opportunity to thank the people of Ballynahinch and Mid-Down for their continued faith in the company.
Mr Hugh Robinson Douglas established the business in early 1926 when he purchased the existing firm of Patterson Undertakers, the owner having decided to emigrate to America.
On the 11th April 1926, Douglas Funeral Directors conducted their first funeral of a Mrs Mary A. McConnell of The Square, Ballynahinch at the total cost of £10.00, and while times and prices have changed, the company ethos has remained.
‘To dedicate ourselves to serving families from all backgrounds, religions and faiths with equality and kindness, to offer our knowledge, expertise, staff and facilities as a resource to those families at a competitive cost.’
With the exception of a brief period during the 1980s, the Douglas family has owned one of Northern Irelands longest established funeral directors for a century. Beginning with Hugh Robinson Douglas, then his sons Billy and Leslie and more recently Bill Reid (Nephew of Billy and Leslie), the company has become firmly established amongst the local community.
For a long number of years, the company operated out of a modest office on Ballynahinch Main Street, but under the stewardship and vision of current owner Bill Reid, the firm has relocated to 20 Dromore Road, Ballynahinch. In 2013, the current, purpose-built premises were officially opened by previous owner, Billy Douglas, a nod to the traditions of the past but with the future in mind.
The £500,000 plus investment was a significant outlay, built on the site of a former filling station, and designed by local architect, Robert Semple, the new premises were a huge advancement on the previous office.
Boasting a 140 seat funeral church with the ability to extend this to 180 seats, where provision can be made for refreshments, whether a family welcomes friends the evening before a funeral or after the funeral service, 3 well-appointed viewing rooms, office suites, a spacious, comfortable reception area and ample, private parking facilities, the new building represents how we feel about the service we provide, that only the best is good enough.
As time and technology advances, Douglas Funeral Home now has the ability to exhibit personal slideshows showing sentimental photographs of a life well lived, also the creation of our own YouTube channel, ‘Douglas Funeral Directors’ allows us to record and then stream any funeral service to anywhere in the world if a family so desires.
Like many Funeral Directors, our fleet of vehicles is a source of immense pride. Sometimes the first thing the public notices about their local funeral director is the vehicles they see on the roads, and therefore we have always taken great care and consideration of not only our Funeral fleet but our support vehicles. From our bespoke Volkswagen Multi-Van to our Mercedes R-Class, both finished to the highest of standards, we use these for our daily duties as they provide a discreet and slightly more subtle vehicle.
The most recent addition to our fleet is the new Bentley Hearse, originally a Bentley Flying Spur V8, this was handcrafted by Eagle Specialist Vehicles. With a 4.0 litre V8 engine, in stunning, dark metallic onyx, with black leather interior and a bespoke laminate deck to match the crown cut Koa wood of the original vehicle. The Bentley Hearse is the ultimate in automotive craftsmanship and coupled with our limousine provides the most elegant fleet of vehicles to help you say goodbye to your loved one.
Douglas Funeral Directors continues to guide our families after the funeral with help and advice on a fitting tribute to your loved one. With a substantial outdoor display of headstones and monumental work, this allows the opportunity to select a beautiful, lasting tribute without the guesswork of what it will look like.
Over the last 100 years, there have been so many people who have contributed to the success and growth of the company, from those humble beginnings of Hugh Douglas, Billy and Rita Douglas, Leslie and ‘B’ Douglas, Eric and Joy Campbell through to current owners Bill and Anne Reid, these people have guided this company to where it is now.
Bill and Anne’s decision to reacquire the company on the 1st July 1991 was driven, in no small part by Bill’s mother, Sylvia, who was a great encouragement that this was the career they should be focusing on, a career that became a vocation to them both.
As we look to the future, Bill and Anne’s son, Douglas Reid has already conducted his first funeral. On the 6th of June 2025, Douglas conducted the funeral of Mrs. June E. Kirkpatrick, adding another generation to the funeral directing family.
We must add some very special thanks to some people and organisations, without which we would never have made the company what it is today.
We would posthumously like to thank the following and if any living friends or relatives are reading this, please accept our gratitude, To Billy Douglas, Shanley Johnston, William Rigg, and Jim Crockard, thank you for all your help and advice in those early years.
To Marion Hunter, David Rigg and Jim Rodgers, we pass on our gratitude for your long service in those early years and your continued support of the company.
To Stephen Chapman, Trevor Alexander, Billy Horne, John Hall and Ruby Clifford, thank you for helping us over the last 15 years while the company expanded, moved premises and continued to flourish, your help, guidance, experience and knowledge has not gone unnoticed and we hope you know the high regard in which we hold you.
To Nigel Reid of Alex Reid & Son, thank you for constructing our premises that serve all of the Mid-Down community. Your craftsmanship and attention to detail are second to none.
To Edengrove Presbyterian Church and the Rev. Scott Woodburn for not only the use of your carpark for additional funeral parking, but for your support and faith in what we continue to try and build here.
To every clergy man and woman of any and all denominations that ever helped us, to every gravedigger, driver, church warden, musician, crematorium attendant or catering team, we want to thank you from the very bottom of our hearts for all your help over the years.
To all our current staff, our Funeral Directors, John Wallace, David Browne and David Jess, our administration team of Gillian Baxter, Naomi Graham, Marina Galway and Andrew Taylor and all our support team, Andrew and Jamie Bracewell, Albert Gibson and John Ward, we want to take this opportunity to thank you for upholding our high standards and for your care and attention to detail.
Here at Douglas Funeral Directors, we hope we have created a special place that serves all of Ballynahinch and Mid-Down, and as the years march on, and with confidence in the next generation, we continue to believe that dignity, compassion and professionalism are the very cornerstone of the service we provide to grieving families.
Douglas Funeral Directors will continue to meet families whatever their circumstances, wherever they are. We will listen, guide and work with our families to ensure they continue to receive the service they deserve for the next 100 years.
