Rostrevor House, Greenpark Road, Rostrevor, Co.Down

Rostrevor House, Greenpark Road, Rostrevor

This is a Grade B building with a complex and well-documented history spanning nearly two centuries.

The site was originally occupied by a house built by William Maguire Esq., notable for its unusual construction. The Newry Magazine of 1815 described it as having "no uniformity" with the kitchen situated in the upper storey, whilst the Ordnance Survey Memoirs of 1836 recorded that its unconventional design earned it the local name "topsy-turvy" from inhabitants. This property, known as Carrickbawn by the early 1830s, was acquired in the late 18th century by David Ross (1729–1809), father of the celebrated Major General Robert Ross-of-Bladensburg (1766–1814). After the General's death, it passed to his widow, Elizabeth Catherine (d.1845), who is said to have enhanced the grounds with new planting around 1820.

The original house does not appear on Taylor and Skinner's map of 1777, and although a building is shown in the general area on Williamson's County Down map of 1810, it remains unnamed, suggesting it may have begun as a modest structure. By 1834, the Ordnance Survey map shows a relatively large footprint of roughly rectangular plan with a shallow projection to the front (east) side, a recess to the west, and two returns to the north. A valuation of October 1835 confirms a substantial but relatively low two-storey building, the main section measuring 99 feet by 52 feet by 17½ feet high, with returns of 14 by 21 by 18 feet and 25 by 16 by 13½ feet, and a basement for servants' rooms of 65 by 22 by 9 feet. To the north stood scattered freestanding outbuildings and a large productive garden. At the entrance to the south was a single-storey gate lodge of irregular plan.

The valuers noted that the concern had been neglected and that "two-thirds of the house is intended to be rebuilt." Architect William Deane Butler of Dublin compiled specifications for the new residence in March 1836 for contractor Thomas Emerson. By October 1836, the Ordnance Survey Memoirs reported that the old house was "now pulling down and rebuilding in the old English style; the dressings and mouldings are of granite (from Mullaglass and Killeavy quarries, County Armagh), and when finished will be a handsome residence." The present Elizabethan villa is shown in its original form on the 1860s Ordnance Survey map. A contemporary valuation records it as "A very handsome Elizabethan villa, stone finished, but rather neglected." The grounds included various outbuildings, a coach house, and a gate lodge.

The rebuilt Carrickbawn passed from Mrs. Ross to her son, David Ross-of-Bladensburg (1804–66), who does not appear to have lived there permanently. His son, Reverend Robert Skeffington Ross-of-Bladensburg (1847–92), became a Jesuit priest and bequeathed the house to his younger brother, Sir John Foster George Ross-of-Bladensburg (1848–1925), who created a noted garden on the property. Sir John had no male heirs, and the estate passed to his niece, Mary Frances Harriett Angela Ross-of-Bladensburg, though she resided elsewhere at Fairy Hill. Consequently, the house is believed to have lain vacant until her death in 1946. Before 1901, the building was renamed Rostrevor House.

In early 1950, Rostrevor House was purchased by the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles, who established it as a non-denominational retreat centre. Around 1965, they added a large Modernist extension to the north side; an extant drawing shows this was originally intended to be considerably larger, extending further north-eastwards. The retreat centre was scaled back in 1998, and the Order remained until around 2003. It was subsequently acquired by the late Lord Ballyedmond, whose family held it until around 2017, though it appears not to have been occupied during this period. It was sold again around 2018.