Warren House

This Victorian-style home has undisturbed views across the Irish Sea. It was built around 1870 and was then given to a newlywed couple as a gift in 1896. The master of the home had been born in England and then moved to Northern Ireland where he became a prominent stockbroker as well as a member of the treasury for Northern Ireland railways. His wife had come from the area where the home was built and she was allegedly known for being extremely charitable.

The home stood on its own walled-in grounds of around an acre and a half. Originally, it contained a dining-room, a large drawing-room, six bedrooms, a bath and water closet, two pantries, a scullery, a washhouse, coal and wood stores, and a water closet for the servants. There was also a two-stall stable as well as a coach house and harness room with apartments for servants attached.

In July of 1898, the home was burglarised and a number of items were stolen including two crimson thread rugs, two sets of lace curtains, one set of brass fire-irons, one mahogany towel rail and one meat saw. The Belfast News-Letter would announce that there was a £5 reward for information which could lead to the person or persons responsible for the robbery.

The couple remained in the home until their deaths in the 1940s. At one point, the home was owned by the Orange Order used as a holiday home for boys of the Junior Orange Association of Ireland. The boys would flock to the home to spend weekends and holiday periods. When we visited, there was evidence left behind of the holiday home. Upstairs, there was one large room overlooking the sea that had a number of bunk-beds and there was also an indoor sporting area on the ground floor.

The home has since been left completely abandoned. Unfortunately, this once-grand home has since become the victim of vandalism as well as theft. Other than the staircase which still remains, albeit extremely damaged, there are very few original features. All of the windows of the home have been smashed and it has been completely stripped of lead and copper piping. Both the inside and the outside has been emblazoned with graffiti. Furthermore, the grounds of the home are overgrown to the point that it’s virtually impossible to reach the front door.

There have been reports that this home is going to be demolished in the future and turned into apartments but as of yet, it appears as though there’s no movement on this front.