Gates to Greenwood House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Vehicular and pedestrian gates with screen framing the entrance to the former Greenwood demesne on E side of Warrenpoint Road. The demesne has been developed for housing and this structure stands disused beside the main Newry – Warrenpoint road.

The screen is unusually angled, its left flank curving inwards at the left end and its right flank making a shallow S curve. The octagonal piers to extreme left and right ends are of one-piece ashlar granite with additional moulded bases and copings, the latter with swept pyramidal caps.

The screen railings have tall vertical bars on a moulded ashlar granite dwarf wall. Clasping foliated detailing to shaft, base and head, and cast iron spearhead finials to each bar. The railings are supported by occasional scrolling Godfather posts (back support to the screen).

Three Bird cage piers (large square-section, pierced cast iron pillars) carry the gates - one to either side of the vehicle gateway and one to its right framing the pedestrian gate. The posts have open Gothic tracery panels and the corners are clasped by grouped slender cast iron colonettes. Moulded cast iron bases and three stage stepped copings. A maker’s name is obscured on the posts but ‘DUNDALK’ is legible. The gates are as the railings with a set dog-bars. Pedestrian gate is a little damaged and left vehicle gate is missing.

Historical information

These gates formed the main entrance to Greenwood Park, the main house being situated a short distance south (it was demolished before WW2). Their scale is such that they are not explicitly shown on the OS 6” maps, but the configuration of the roadways within the estate suggests they were probably extant on the 1834 edition. The property was owned by Mr Ross Thompson in the early 1800s.

There are three other structures associated with the estate: a mock castle (HB16/10/001), gate lodge (HB16/10/025) and gardener’s house (HB16/10/030).

Primary Sources:
1. Bradshaw’s Newry Directory (1819).
2. PRONI OS maps 1st edition (1834), Co Down sheet 50.
3. PRONI 1st Valuation book (c.1835), VAL 1B/389.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

The setting of these attractive cast iron gates is now entirely compromised by extensive modern housing development and their original relationship to Greenwood House ceased on its demolition.