Castle Dobbs

THE DOBBS' OWNED 5,060 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY ANTRIM

This family was established in Ulster by JOHN DOBBS, only son of Sir Richard Dobbs (a founder of Christ's Hospital and Lord Mayor of London, 1551), who accompanied Sir Henry Docwra to the Province in 1596, and was subsequently his deputy as treasurer for Ulster.

Richard Dobbs, Photo Credit: Christ's Hospital Foundation

This JohnDobbs married, in 1603, Margaret, only child of John Dalway, of Ballyhill, and had two sons, Foulk, who was lost at sea with his father in returning from England, 1622; and

HERCULES DOBBS (1613-34), who, succeeding to his father's property, wedded Magdalen West, of Ballydugan, County Down, and left an only son,


RICHARD DOBBS (1634-1701), of Castle Dobbs, High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1664, who espoused, in 1655, Dorothy, daughter and co-heir of Bryan Willans, of Clints Hall, Richmond, Yorkshire, and had issue (with three daughters), two sons.

Mr Dobbs left his estate to his younger son,

RICHARD DOBBS (1660-1711), of Castletown, who married firstly, Mary, daughter of Archibald Stewart, of Ballintoy, and had, with two daughters (Jane and Elizabeth), three sons,

ARTHUR, his heir;
Richard;
Marmaduke;
Clareville Grove.

He married secondly, Margaret Clugston, of Belfast, and by her had three daughters.

This gentleman served in WILLIAM III's army in Ireland until the 2nd siege of Limerick and the Treaty of Surrender.He was Mayor of Carrickfergus. 

On the 14th June, 1690, he welcomed William of Orange on his landing in Ulster as Mayor of Carrickfergus; High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1694.

 His eldest son and heir,

ARTHUR DOBBS (1689-1765), of Castle Dobbs, High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1720, MP for Carrickfergus, 1727-60.

Arthur Dobbs, 6th Governor of North Carolina

Mr Dobbs, who was appointed Engineer and Surveyor-General of Ireland, by Sir Robert Walpole, was, 1753, sent out as Governor of North Carolina, where he acquired large possessions, including 400,000 acres in the colony.

It is, perhaps, a matter of some curiosity that Arthur Dobbs was not elevated to the peerage or, indeed, the baronetage, for his services.

He wedded Anne, daughter and heir of Captain Osborne, of Timahoe, County Kildare, and widow of Captain Norbury, and had issue.

He was succeeded by his eldest son,

CONWAY RICHARD DOBBS (1727-1811), of Castle Dobbs, MP for Carrickfergus, 1768-90, who espoused firstly, Anne, daughter of Alexander Stewart, in 1749, and had issue,

RICHARD, his heir.

He married secondly, Charity, widow of Stephen Rice, of Mount Rice, County Kildare, and daughter of Robert Burrowes, of Kildare, by Mary, his wife, daughter of John O'Neill, of Shane's Castle, County Antrim, and had further issue,

Edward Brice, twice Mayor of Carrickfergus;
Robert Conway (Rev);
Frances.

Mr Dobbs, High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1752, was succeeded by his son,

RICHARD DOBBS (1753-1840), of Castle Dobbs, who married, in 1792, Nichola, daughter of Michael Obins, of Portadown, by Nichola his wife, second daughter of Archibald, 1st Viscount Gosford, and had issue,

CONWAY RICHARD, his heir;
Archibald Edward, father of ARCHIBALD EDWARD DOBBS;
Acheson;
Nichola; Frances; Olivia.

Mr Dobbs was succeeded by his eldest son,

CONWAY RICHARD DOBBS JP DL (1796-1886), of Castle Dobbs, High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1841, MP for Carrickfergus, 1832, who wedded, in 1826, Charlotte Maria, daughter and co-heiress of Richard Sinclair, of Fort William, County Antrim, and had issue,

Richard Archibald Conway (1842-53);
MONTAGU WILLIAM EDWARD, of whom presently;
Olivia Nichola; Frances Millicent; Charlotte Louisa Mary; Alicia Hester Caroline;
Harriet Sydney; Nichola Susan; Millicent Georgina Montagu.

He married secondly, in 1875, Winifred Susannah, youngest daughter of Benjamin Morris, of Lewes, Sussex.

Mr Dobbs was succeeded by his eldest surviving son,

MONTAGU WILLIAM EDWARD DOBBS JP DL (1844-1906), of Castle Dobbs, High Sheriff for County Kildare, 1871, County Antrim, 1888, a barrister, who was succeeded by his cousin,

ARCHIBALD EDWARD DOBBS JP (1838-1916), of Castle Dobbs, High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1909, a barrister, who wedded, in 1875, Edith Mary, second daughter of Sir James Timmins Chance Bt, and had issue,

ARTHUR FREDERICK, his heir;
Francis Wellesley;
Archibald Edward.

Mr Dobbs' eldest son,

ARTHUR FREDERICK DOBBS DL (1876-1955), of Castle Dobbs, High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1921, Member of the NI Senate, 1929-33 and 1937, married, in 1915, Hylda Louise, daughter of Captain Conway Richard Dobbs Higginson, and had issue,

RICHARD ARTHUR FREDERICK, his heir;
Joan Kathleen, b 1917.

Major  Dobbs was succeeded by his only son,

SIR RICHARD ARTHUR FREDERICK DOBBS KCVO JP (1919-2004), Judge of the Circuit Court, 1951-55, Lord-Lieutenant of County Antrim, 1959-94, who married, in 1953, Carola Day, daughter of Christopher Clarkson, and had issue,

Richard Francis Andrew Dobbs, b 1955; m the Lady Jane Alexander, sister of 7th Earl of Caledon, 1990; div. 1999; has issue, three daughters;
Nigel Christopher Dobbs, b 1957, High Sheriff of Co Antrim, 2009;
Matthew Frederick Dobbs b 1959;
Sophia Carola Dobbs b 1965;
Nicholas Arthur Montagu Dobbs b 1973.

CASTLE DOBBS, near Carrickfergus, County Antrim, remains the seat of the Dobbs family and is one of the most significant houses of its kind in Northern Ireland.

An 18th century mansion in the manner of Sir Edward Lovett Pearce, Castle Dobbs was built in 1730 by Arthur Dobbs, 

Surveyor-General of Ireland; Governor of North Carolina; agriculturalist; and organizer of expeditions to discover the North-West Passage from Hudson's Bay to the Pacific. As Surveyor-General, Arthur Dobbs supervised  the construction of the Irish Parliament House in Dublin. While a member of the Irish Parliament (for Carrickfergus), Dobbs purchased 400,000 acres of North Carolina in 1745.

An authority on country houses, Professor Rowan, has said that,

"For its date, 1750-54, it is quite without an equal in Ulster; while its perfect Palladian plan with flanking wings ... is hard to match in a house of this scale anywhere in Ireland."

Castle Dobbs House consists of two storeys over a high basement with a seven-bay front with a three-bay pedimented break-front centre.

There is an entablature over the lower storey and a high solid parapet to the roof.

Later, there were single-storey wings added over the basement with bracket cornices, extending the front by three bays on either side.

The garden front can be seen above; while the entrance front is below.

The demesne was established in the 16th century. The house stands in a commanding position overlooking Belfast Lough and the County Down shore across the lough.

There is remaining evidence of the formal gardens for the 17th century house, now in ruins adjacent to the later house.

The present layout is in relation to the 18th century house and takes the form of a landscape park, with a lake, bridge and cascade.

The whole demesne contains fine mature trees in shelter belts, parkland, woodland and avenues.

There are informal glen-side walks, with recent planting by the lake and ornamental areas near the house.

One walled garden is no longer cultivated but another, to the west of the house, is fully maintained and the potting sheds are still in use.

A remaining glasshouse backs onto these.

The design of this garden was created to commemorate the tercentenary of Arthur Dobbs' birth in 1689.

Arthur Dobbs was a plantsman and noted for recognition of Dionaea muscipula (Venus fly-trap) whilst governor of North Carolina.

The site has been in the continuous ownership of the Dobbs family and there is good documentary evidence as to its development.

There have been successful adaptations through the years to suit the style of the times.

Two late 19th century gate lodges remain, but two from earlier in the century have gone.

First published in March, 2010.