84C Sandown Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Detached five-bay two-storey over basement rendered villa having projecting bays to north and south and single-storey entrance porch to south built c.1900. Single-storey hipped roof extension at ground floor level and lower ground floor level extending to north from basement level of main house, c.2010. Located within private residential complex to the north of Sandown Road with series of red brick apartment buildings to east and west.

Hipped slate roof with terracotta ridge tiles, oversailing eaves on cavetto moulded eaves course. Ogee moulded metal guttering discharging to circular metal downpipes. Five rendered chimney stacks having projecting moulded string course and coping with octagonal terracotta pots. Square-headed openings with one over one timber sliding sash windows throughout, unless otherwise stated.

Five-bay front elevation faces south and has shallow projecting hipped bays flanking entrance porch, recessed at ground floor level. Rusticated ground floor with projecting plinth and moulded stringcourse. Smooth rendered first floor with continuous moulded cill course. Flat leaded roof to entrance porch having balustraded parapet with moulded coping. Projecting cornice and frieze supported on four columns with moulded plinth on steps. Three-centred arched opening to first floor with panelled pilaster supporting moulded surround with keystone and roundel to spandrel. Paired round-headed stained-glass windows inset. Round-headed entrance door opening with timber panelled entrance door and fan-light over to east side of recess to entrance porch. Cast-iron scrolled bracket and octagonal lantern to entrance porch.

East elevation has three bays with tripartite window to ground floor and single-storey timber-framed conservatory extending east. Extension to north has three bays with flat roof having raised parapet forming terrace to ground floor with moulded string course and coping; smooth rendered walls.

North elevation has advancing east and west bays with hipped roofs flanking gabled bay to main house. Projecting smooth rendered chimney stacks to centre of flanking bays. Openings to ground and first floor. Single-storey extension to north has hipped roof and square-headed door opening. Lower ground floor extension has seven bays with advancing east and west bays flanking central three bays which contain entrance entrance with square-headed opening.

West elevation has three-bays with smooth rendered plinth to basement and tripartite window to ground floor. Lower ground floor extension to north has three bays.

Setting: The building is located within a private apartment complex with red brick buildings to the east and west. Tarmac driveway leads from Sandown Road to the west having metal gate and fencing surrounding the complex. Landscaped gardens located to the south, east and west with hedge and tree boundaries. Lawns, planting and pathways extend to the side and rear of the building.

Materials:
Roof: Slate
RWG: Metal
Walls Smooth render
Windows One over one timber sliding sash, stained glass to upper floor of principle elevation.

Historical information

No. 84 Sandown Road, a two-storey-with-basement Regency-style house located in the townland of Ballycloghan, was constructed in c. 1889. The building, which is also known as ‘Sandown House,’ was constructed on land owned by Sir. Robert E. Ward (Viscount Bangor), a prominent local magistrate and landlord who resided at Bangor Castle and also owned the adjoining No. 82 Sandown Road and No. 9 Sandown Park (built in 1897 – see HB26/14/002A-B). The NIEA HB Records note that the land was leased by Ward to a Mr. Robert Corry on 7th November 1887. The current house had been constructed by 1889 when it was first included in the Annual Revisions. In that year the valuer set the total rateable value of the building at £89 and 10 shillings and recorded that construction of the house had cost £1,400 (UTD).

The first occupant of Sandown House was Robert Corry, a local builder and contractor who held business premises on University Street. Sandown appeared on the Annual Revisions Town Plan (1895-1905) which depicted it as a square-shaped building that did not possess the current return or flat-roof extension to its rear (which were added in c. 2009). The 1901 census described Corry’s residence as a 1st class dwelling that consisted of 12 rooms and possessed a stable, cow house, dairy, a barn and a laundry amongst its outbuildings (all now demolished). Corry continued to reside at Sandown until his death in 1909 (PRONI Wills). The Ulster Town Directories note that the house was briefly occupied by William Virtue, the managing director of the United Distillery Ltd. (a company that was formed by the merger of Watt’s Distillery, the Irish Distillery Ltd. and Avoniel Distillery in 1902 and which dominated the Irish market - Bielenberg, p. 95).

On 28th May 1919 Sandown House was leased to Sir. Frederick E. Rebbeck. The Dictionary of Ulster Biography notes that Rebbeck (1877-1964) served as an engineering apprenticeship in England before moving to Belfast to work at Harland & Wolff. In 1930 Rebbeck became Chief Executive of the shipyard after buying out Sir Owen Cosby Phillips (who had succeeded William Pirrie following his death in 1924). Rebbeck managed Harland & Wolff following the downturn of the international shipping industry and during the depression of the 1930s. He led the company into the construction of aircraft with the formation of Shorts Brothers & Harland and, during the Second World War, oversaw the repair of the shipyards which had been bombed during the Belfast Blitz. Rebbeck personally received orders for ships from Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty, and was knighted by King George VI in 1941 (DUB).

The NIEA HB Records note that Sandown House bears signs of having underwent an extensive alteration following Rebbeck’s acquisition of the site in 1919. A report details that ‘the current staircase appears to be a later edition and is reputed to have been removed from a local church and fitted to the house. There are
references to shipping throughout the design of the main hall area, the most obvious being the ship’s wheel motif found within the glazed light above the main door. The coloured leaded glazing to the front hall is reminiscent of glazing undertaken by Italian craftsmen in the Harland & Wolff shipyards in the 1930’s’ (NIEA HB Records). Ownership of Sandown House had passed to a Mrs. McFerran by the First General Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1936-57) which increased the value of the property to £147. Rebbeck had retired in 1962 and died at Sandown House on 27th June 1964 (PRONI Wills). Following Rebbeck’s death, Sandown was acquired by William J. Glover who continued to reside at the property from 1964 until the 1990s. By the end of the Second Revaluation (1956-72) the value of Sandown House stood at £151.

Sandown House was listed in 1987. The Glover family continued to occupy the property until 1999 when it was sold to Fraser Homes Ltd. It remained vacant until c.2009 when the former private dwelling underwent an extensive refurbishment aimed at converting it into a number of self-contained apartments. The central return and flat-roof extension, located to the rear of the building, were added at this time. The restoration of the late-Victorian manor was carried out to the designs of Sutherland Architects who were also responsible for the construction of the modern red-brick apartment blocks located within Sandown’s former grounds (NIEA HB Records; Sutherland Architects Design Concept).

References

Primary Sources
1. PRONI OS/6/3/4/3 – Third Edition Ordnance Survey map (1902)
2. PRONI OS/6/3/4/4 – Fourth Edition Ordnance Survey map (1920-21)
3. PRONI OS/6/3/4/5 – Fifth Edition Ordnance Survey map (1931)
4. PRONI OS/6/3/4/6 – Sixth Edition Ordnance Survey map (1938)
5. PRONI VAL/12/E/192/H/46B/1 – Annual Revisions Town Plan (1895-1905)
6. PRONI VAL/12/B/17/2G – Annual Revisions (1891-1897)
7. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/L/1-11 – Annual Revisions (1897-1930)
8. PRONI VAL/3/C/3/12 – First General Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1936-57)
9. PRONI VAL/4/B/7/29 – Second General Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1956-72)
10. Ulster Town Directories (1890-1943)
11. Census of Ireland (1901; 1911)
12. PRONI Wills Catalogue (25 Apr 1909; 27 Jun 1964)
13. First Survey Record – HB26/14/004 (1984)
14. NIEA HB Records – HB26/14/004 (including Sutherland Architect’s Design Concept).

Secondary Sources
1. Bielenberg, A., ‘Ireland and the industrial revolution: The impact of the industrial revolution on Irish industry, 1801-1922’ New York, Routledge, 2009.

Online Resources
1. Dictionary of Irish Architects - http://www.dia.ie/
2. Dictionary of Ulster Biography - http://www.newulsterbiography.co.uk/index.php/home/viewPerson/1849

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
I. Quality and survival of Interior

Criteria for listing: historic interest

R. Age
S. Authenticity
T. Historic Importance
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A well-proportioned and detailed house constructed in the late-nineteenth century in a ‘Regency-style’, evident by the hipped roof with oversailing eaves, central chimney stack, moulded string course and the rusticated ground floor. The building is of historic interest and past owners included William Virtue, managing director of United Distillery Ltd, and Sir Frederick E. Rebbeck, Chief Executive of Harland & Wolff shipyard who formed Shorts Brothers & Harland and oversaw the repair of shipyards which had been bombed during the Belfast Blitz. The decorative fanlight above the entrance door and coloured leaded glazing to the first floor gallery are of artistic merit and enhance the appearance of the ornately decorated hallway and gallery.