Titanic Quarter

54°36′24.51″N 5°54′20.84″W / 54.6068083°N 5.9057889°W / 54.6068083; -5.9057889

Titanic Quarter in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is a large-scale waterfront regeneration, comprising historic maritime landmarks, film studios, education facilities, apartments, a riverside entertainment district, and the world's largest Titanic-themed attraction centred on land in Belfast Harbour, known until 1995 as Queen's Island, and initially, Dargan's Island. The 185-acre (75 ha) site, previously occupied by part of the Harland and Wolff shipyard, is named after the company's, and the city's, most famous product, RMS Titanic. Titanic Quarter is part of the Dublin-based group, Harcourt Developments, which has held the development rights since 2003.

Prior to the developments of the Titanic Quarter, the island was initially named ‘Dargan’s Island’ after engineer William Dargan who was undertaking the work. In the 1840s, the land was created when a deep channel was cut through the mudflats of the river Lagan, the material excavated from the cut was used to form the artificial Dargan’s Island. It was later renamed to Queen's Island when Queen Victoria visited Belfast in 1849. The island's first use was as a people's park, with a zoo, a Crystal Palace, gardens, and a bathing pond.

In 1853 the Harbour Commissioners leased land on the island to shipbuilder Robert Hickson, who later employed a 23-year-old Edward Harland as manager. In 1861 Edward Harland and Hamburg-born Gustav Wolff established what was to become the world's most successful shipyard - Harland and Wolff. The Queen's Island shipyard continued to grow after taking charge of the Shipyard. By 1875, Harland and Wolff had grown to a large yard employing more than 1,000 workers. Wooden lighthouses were erected in the late 1800s to assist the mariners as they came in and out of the Belfast docks as Belfast's coal and steel industries continued to grow.

The Abercorn Basin and Hamilton Dock were established in 1876 for the growing shipbuilding industry. The Abercorn Basin (known as Belfast Marina) was used for the transportation of coal onto cargo boats, the presence of swan-necked cranes were common during the 20th century. Harland & Wolff shipyard used Abercorn Basin to launch many of ships for White Star Line.

The largest development is the £97 million Titanic Belfast visitor attraction which holds the record for the island's largest ever single concrete pour (4,300 cubic metres) for its foundations. The building opened on 31 March 2012 and attracted over 800,000 visitors in its first year. The attraction is owned by a charitable foundation. The architects said that "we have created an architectural icon that captures the spirit of the shipyards, ships, water crystals, ice, and the White Star Line's logo. Its architectural form cuts a skyline silhouette that has been inspired by the very ships that were built on this hallowed ground."

In 2005 the Catalyst Inc opened, a science park affiliated closely with Queen's University Belfast, the University of Ulster and Titanic Studios (aka the Paint Hall Studios, a film studio originally created by film producer Jo Gilbert that was used in the production of films including Tom Hanks's City of Ember starring Bill Murray, Your Highness and HBO's television series Game of Thrones).

The £30 million headquarters of the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) opened at 2 Titanic Boulevard in April 2011. PRONI is the national archive for Northern Ireland and holds records dating from 1219.