Flowerfield House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

An extensively restored symmetrical two-storey-over-basement, three-bay, detached former dwelling, now exhibition centre with large modern extension; built c.1860 and located to the east side of Coleraine Road south of Portstewart town centre. L-shaped plan with large modern two-storey extension (2003) to rear.

Replacement natural slate roof with blue/black angled ridge tiles and replacement rendered chimneystacks to centre of ridgeline. Plastic rainwater goods on projecting eaves with sheeted soffits and fascia. Walling is painted ruled-and-lined render. Replacement 6/6 timber-framed sash windows with projecting painted sills.

The principal elevation faces southwest and is symmetrically arranged with five openings at each floor (those to side bays are more closely spaced). To centre is a square-headed doorcase accessed via a stone bridge over basement channel with modern metal railings. Raised-and-fielded four-panel timber door with brass knocker and transom light is flanked by pilaster jambs and surmounted by corniced canopy (not original) on scrolled console brackets.

The northwest elevation is abutted at far left by the modern extension; four evenly-spaced windows to first and ground floor; to far left is a modern casement window (slightly lower that first floor level) and a modern double-leaf glazed timber door to ground floor accessed via a modern timber walkway. Basement has two windows and a modern timber-sheeted door at left.

The northeast (rear) elevation is almost entirely concealed by the large two-storey modern extension built in 2003 to designs by Consarc Partnership. Modern extension abuts the projecting right wing; window to first floor left.

The southeast elevation is two windows wide at each floor.

Setting:

Situated on a large mature site to the east side of Coleraine Road, accessed from the main road via a long tarmacadamed avenue leading to rear car-park. Landscaped garden to front with childrens play-area to north side of the garden. Flagstones to front of house; basement enclosed by modern metal railings. Entrance located in the rear extension, which dominates the view from rear and is visible to left and right side of the house from southwest.

Roof: Natural slate
Walling: Ruled-and-lined render
Windows: Replacement timber-framed sash
RWG: Plastic

Historical information

Flowerfield House was built c1860, replacing an earlier dwelling house of 1710, the remains of which were present on the site until c1980. The house is first shown on the third edition OS map of 1904, captioned ‘Flowerfield’.

The site of the present house was owned by the Kerr/O’Neill family, relatives of the O’Neills of Shane’s Castle, the Kerrs being Scots who arrived in the area at plantation. The first owner of the land appears to have been Robert Kerr, whose son David was killed in ‘the revolution of 1688’. Robert’s daughter Hester married Felix O’Neill and the holding then passed to Mark Kerr O’Neill and his son, also Mark Kerr O’Neill who died in 1818 and is buried in Ballyaghran old church yard, opposite Flowerfield. O’Neill bequeathed a sum of £50 to the poor of the parish on his death, although the sum was disputed by his heirs. (OS Memoirs) A house was built on the land in 1710, described in OS Memoirs as a ‘plain house devoid of ornament either in itself or the grounds’. (Vowles, OS Memoirs).

In the 1760s the house is said to have been a temporary refuge for ‘Half Hanged MacNaghten’, a convicted murderer and popular hero whose execution was temporarily stalled when the rope broke. He is said to have hidden from soldiers in pursuit of him by concealing himself under the skirts of one of the ladies in the drawing room. During the unrest of 1772 in which the ‘Hearts of Steel’ were prominent, Mrs Eliza O’Neill wrote to her mother describing a state of siege at the house “We have bags of sand nailed up in most of the windows to keep out their balls and plenty of charges ready made in paper to charge the faster and six guns always ready”. (Vowles)

By the time of the Townland Valuation (1828-40) the house, captioned ‘Flower Field’ on the first edition OS map (1830) and valued at £15.6s was the property of Samuel Orr, an affluent gentleman farmer who owned property in Marylebone, London (PRONI D3010). Griffith’s Valuation (1856-64) values the property at £35 and this valuation probably refers to the new building although it is the old house which is depicted on the second edition OS map of 1856. Samuel Orr Esq leased the property from William Wilson Campbell and Alexander Shuldham and it is thought to have been Orr who built the new house around 1860. Samuel Orr died in 1869 and the house was then occupied by Major Alexander Shuldham from County Longford who died in 1876. The house was subsequently purchased by Edward Hay Junior for £4,500 and let to a series of tenants. At the time of the 1911 census the tenant was English widow Susanna Baritta Moore who lived on dividends and kept a general domestic servant. The twelve-room house was designated first class. (Vowles; Valuation Records; 1911 census)

Charles and Muriel Munro rented the house from 1922 and in the years after the second world war the house was visited by Joyce Cary (1888-1957) who was a relative of the family. Cary was a novelist and artist whose most famous work ‘The Horse’s Mouth’ was adapted into a successful film starring Alec Guinness. (Fisher) Muriel Munro lived at the house until 1962 and the house then fell vacant until it was acquired by Coleraine Borough Council in 1973, at which time it was completely derelict. In 1980 it opened as the first Arts Centre in Northern Ireland, retaining for some years the earlier house behind the building, which has now been demolished together with the former outbuildings. (HB file; www.flowerfield.org)

In 2002/3 a large extension was built to the rear of the building and the interior of the main house re-worked to give a gallery space and administration offices. (HB file)

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/5/3/1 First Edition OS Map 1830
2. PRONI OS/6/5/3/2 Second Edition OS map 1856
3. PRONI OS/6/5/3/3 Third Edition OS Map 1904
4. PRONI OS/6/5/3/4 Fourth Edition OS Map 1922-39
5. PRONI OS/6/5/3/5 Fifth Edition OS Map 1939-50
6. PRONI VAL/1/B/539A-B Townland Valuation (1828-40)
7. PRONI VAL/2/B/5/10 Griffiths Valuation (1861)
8. PRONI VAL/12/B/30/17A-H Annual Revisions (1864-1929)
9. PRONI VAL/3/C/6/18 First General Revaluation 1933-57
10. PRONI VAL/3/D/6/8/A/5 First General Revaluation 1933-57
11. PRONI D3010 – Papers of Orr family
12. 1911 census
13. HB file – 03/08/006

Secondary Sources

1. Day, A., P. McWilliams, English L., eds. “OS Memoirs of Ireland, Parishes of County Londonderry XII, 1829-30, 1832, 1834-6, Vol. 33.” Belfast: Institute of Irish Studies, 1995.
2. Fisher, B “Joyce Cary Remembered” 1988
3. Vowles, P, The Bann Disc, Journal of Coleraine Historical Society, Vol. 3
4. www.flowerfield.org.uk

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
R. Age

Evaluation

Flowerfield House is an extensively restored symmetrical two-storey-over-basement, three-bay, detached former dwelling, now an exhibition centre with large modern extension; built c.1860 and located to the east side of Coleraine Road south of Portstewart town centre. The award winning extension is of high quality in its design. The Victorian building has been substantialy altered, with much replacement fabric and a fully refurbished interior It has been successfully integrated with the new build to create a public arts centre and still retains its essential proportions and character of the Victorian house.

General comments

Listing Criteria R - Age also applies