Brookhill Demesne Walled Garden, 88B Ballinderry Road, Ballyellough, Lisburn, County Antrim, BT28 2QX

Walled Garden and Gates, Brookhill Demesne

This is the surviving walled garden complex associated with the former Brookhill Demesne, located on the north side of the Ballinderry Road approximately 2.5 miles south-east of Upper Ballinderry. The main house has since been demolished, but the walled garden and its gates form part of a larger group of historic structures from the estate, which includes agricultural outbuildings and a tower. The structures date primarily from 1800 to 1870, though some elements — most notably the north-west garden wall — may have origins as early as the early 17th century.

Historical Background

The site has an exceptionally long history. According to W. S. Corken, a fortified stone bawn was constructed here in 1611 by Sir Foulke Conway during the Plantation of Ulster, on a site previously occupied by the Elizabethan colonel Sir Francis Brook, after whom Brookhill takes its name. In 1631, George Rawdon came into possession of the dwelling. During the 1641 Rebellion, Brookhill was seized by the leader of the uprising, Sir Phelim O'Neil, who later set fire to the property while retreating from defeat at Lisburn. The Ordnance Survey Memoirs of 1837 record that the remains of this 17th-century castle were visible in the garden of the then-occupant, Mr Watson, and that several yards of the old parapet wall surrounding the castle — described as being built of stone and lime, standing 7½ feet high and 2½ feet thick — still survived and were known locally as the Castle Wall. The current north-west garden wall is the earliest section of the surviving walls and may be a remnant of this early castle structure.

The house was rebuilt between 1641 and 1649. A Mr James Watson came into occupation around 1740, at which time the Jacobethan-style dwelling was enlarged or modified. The Brookhill estate was held on lease from the Marquis of Hertford, and an 1806 letter to the Marquis notes that the lease had proved very beneficial to the Watson family and that Watson had laid out considerable sums improving both the house and gardens. Hertford chose not to repossess the estate, and the Watson family continued in occupation until around 1870, when possession passed to a Mr William T. B. Lyons.

The first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1832 shows that the pleasure garden to the south-west of Brookhill House had already been enclosed by that date, with the earliest gate (Gate 05) providing access from the house through the north-west wall, and a 1½-storey lean-to gardener's cottage occupying the east corner of the enclosure. The second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1857 shows extensive landscaping within the garden and the addition of a gateway to the south-east wall (Gate 06). It also shows a gate lodge at the south entrance — later replaced around 1870 by the surviving gate lodge — and a second gate lodge at the south-east corner of the garden walls, which had been demolished by the time of the third edition Ordnance Survey map of 1900. According to Dean, this second gate lodge was not of long standing and was taken down when William Lyons assumed possession around 1870.

Lyons appears to have carried out significant works to the estate around 1870, including the probable rebuilding of the south-west garden wall and the installation of new gateways at the western entrance (Gate 03) and in the north-west wall (Gate 04). When Lyons took over, the estate was valued at £150, though this was reduced to £120 in 1886 following complaints that the valuation was too high despite the recent improvements.

The enclosed area continued in use as a pleasure garden until the mid-to-late 20th century, when a private dwelling was constructed within the garden walls and an additional entrance created (Gate 01). The 1971 Ordnance Survey map shows this dwelling in the south-east half of the gardens. A second dwelling was subsequently built in the north-west half, with a further gateway added (Gate 02). By 1994, Brookhill House had been abandoned and fallen into serious disrepair; the main house has now been mostly demolished.

The Walled Garden and Its Gates

The walled garden is a roughly rectangular enclosure with walls of varying construction periods reflecting the long and complex history of the site. Construction materials throughout are predominantly basalt, with red brick detailing and dressings used particularly in later 19th-century phases.

The south-west boundary wall is basalt stone built to courses with a concrete coping, and was possibly rebuilt around 1870. It is subdivided into two ownerships and contains two 20th-century openings — Gate 01 and Gate 02 — giving access to the two modern dwellings now located within the walled garden.

The north-west wall is considered the earliest section of the enclosure, possibly forming part of the original early 17th-century castle wall. It is constructed of field stone, with upper brick courses likely added at a later date. Gate 04, inserted into the centre of this wall, was added around 1870 and features a compound pointed arch in red brick with basalt spandrels.

The north-east wall is of mixed construction: the right-hand half is partially coursed basalt, while the left-hand side is basalt rubble with intermediate brick courses and upper brick arches. Gate 05, the earliest gate in the entire walled garden complex, is a simple brick-arched opening and retains a replacement door.

The south-east wall is predominantly coursed basalt and contains Gate 06, located to the left of the wall and dating from around 1850. Gate 06 has a red brick pointed arch with basalt spandrels and retains its iron gates. The far right of this wall has been modified and was formerly the location of a gate lodge.

Abutting the far left of the south-west wall is Gate 03, built around 1870, with a compound pointed-arch pedestrian entrance to the right-hand side. It is constructed of squared basalt with red brick detailing and has a pitched slate coping; the gates themselves have been removed.

To the south-east corner of the walled enclosure stands a small 1½-storey lean-to gardener's cottage predating 1830, whose elevation is incorporated into the face of the walled garden.

Setting and Wider Estate

The former walled garden now encloses two modern dwellings accessed from the road running parallel to the site. Beyond the walls lies mature woodland leading up to a replacement house on the site of the original Brookhill House, with gardens to the front.

The historic agricultural buildings to the rear of the former house form the agricultural setting of the wider demesne. These are primarily asymmetrical two-storey structures with pitched slate roofs, constructed of coursed basalt with red brick surrounds to openings, dating from around 1830 to 1855. They extend to the north and some carry 20th-century alterations. Beyond the agricultural buildings the landscape opens to open rural countryside. The gate lodge at the east entrance dates from around 1870 and replaced an earlier gate lodge on the same site.

A tower dating from around 1850, abutting the south-east gable of a two-storey outbuilding, is among the other surviving historic structures on the wider estate. An illustration of Brookhill House of unknown date shows that this tower was originally surmounted by a cupola, which has since been lost; the same illustration shows that a similar ornate domed tower once adorned the roof of Brookhill House itself. Despite the loss of the cupola, the tower survives in good condition, though its original purpose is unknown. An ornate gateway (Gate 07) to the north-west of the former house, giving access to the northern outbuildings, appears on the 1857 Ordnance Survey map and survives in good condition. A second gateway at the eastern entrance to the house (Gate 08) does not appear until the third edition Ordnance Survey map of 1900–01, though it may date from an earlier period.

The walled garden and gates are of significant historic interest as part of a collective group of surviving structures representing three centuries of development at Brookhill Demesne, and the site is also recorded as a monument.