JOSEPH REID JP (1836-1928), of 22 Elmwood Avenue (built ca 1870), Belfast (now The Hub, Belfast), Managing Director, Forster Green and Company, who married and had an only son,
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| 22 Elmwood Avenue (Image: Timothy Ferres. 2021) |
DAVID DOUGLAS REID JP (1872-1939), of Rademon, County Down, a barrister, MP for East Down, 1918-22, County Down, 1922-39, High Sheriff of County Down, 1936.
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| 22 Elmwood Avenue (Image: Timothy Ferres, 2021) |
Mr Reid was created a baronet in 1936, designated of Rademon, County Down.
He died at Brown's Hotel, Mayfair, London, in 1939, where he had been unwell for a fortnight.
Lady Reid was with him when he died.
Sir David is buried at Kilmore parish church.
When he died the title became extinct.
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| Rademon House today |
RADEMON HOUSE, near Crossgar, County Down, was originally a five-bay house of ca 1667, comprising three storeys over a basement, with single-storey wings.
It was built by the Johnston family, whose heiress married James Crawford, of Crawfordsburn, later in the 18th century.
Arthur Johnston (1721-1814) was MP for Killyleagh, 1769-76.
Rademon was enlarged and embellished in the mid-19th century.
The house was gutted by fire in the 1950s, though was rebuilt successfully to designs of the Hon Claud (later 4th Baron) Phillimore, who lowered the centre block by one storey and added a storey to the wings, thus creating a two-storey, nine-bay front.
The Victorian Rademon House features in J A K Dean's Plight of the Big House in Northern Ireland, page 93.
The demesne comprised 544 acres.
There are fine mature trees in undulating parkland and on the north side of the avenue.
Mature woodland is managed.
Rademon House is on sloping ground and has been terraced.
Lawns descend to ornamental planting and a pond.
There is a part-walled garden, which lies in a sheltered spot.
It is partly cultivated with a glass-house.
A SANDSTONE obelisk monument of ca 1864 was erected as a memorial to William Sharman-Crawford MP "by a grateful and attached tenantry."
The monument is set on a rise within the Rademon Estate.
It is in ashlar sandstone and consists of a tall obelisk and plinth set on top of a broad, stepped sunken base surrounded by a ha-ha-like ditch.
The obelisk is tapered and has a pyramidal top and a short base with rope moulding.
The plinth has a corbelled cornice course with pediments, a stepped and chamfered base course, and is topped with urns to the corners.
There are square panels to each face of the plinth.
The north panel contains a bronze relief plaque with two classical style female figures flanking a draped oval containing profile portrait of Sharman-Crawford.
The demesne comprised 544 acres.
There are fine mature trees in undulating parkland and on the north side of the avenue.
Mature woodland is managed.
Rademon House is on sloping ground and has been terraced.
Lawns descend to ornamental planting and a pond.
There is a part-walled garden, which lies in a sheltered spot.
It is partly cultivated with a glass-house.
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| Photo Credit:@ShortcrossDavid |
A SANDSTONE obelisk monument of ca 1864 was erected as a memorial to William Sharman-Crawford MP "by a grateful and attached tenantry."
The monument is set on a rise within the Rademon Estate.
It is in ashlar sandstone and consists of a tall obelisk and plinth set on top of a broad, stepped sunken base surrounded by a ha-ha-like ditch.
The obelisk is tapered and has a pyramidal top and a short base with rope moulding.
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| William Sharman-Crawford MP (Image: Ulster Museum) |
The plinth has a corbelled cornice course with pediments, a stepped and chamfered base course, and is topped with urns to the corners.
There are square panels to each face of the plinth.
The north panel contains a bronze relief plaque with two classical style female figures flanking a draped oval containing profile portrait of Sharman-Crawford.
The plaque is inscribed "S[amuel] F[erres] Lynn" and dated 1864.
The panel to the east side of the plinth contains an inscription referring to the subscription for the monument raised by the tenantry.
To the south side is Crawford's coat-of-arms; and to the west is a further inscription containing some information of his life and career.
The large base to the monument is topped with a shallow chamfer with which merges into steps and squat, pyramidal headed corner piers.
Beyond this, the base is grass covered and gently slopes down to granite coped edging, around which is the ditch or ha-ha.
The panel to the east side of the plinth contains an inscription referring to the subscription for the monument raised by the tenantry.
To the south side is Crawford's coat-of-arms; and to the west is a further inscription containing some information of his life and career.
The large base to the monument is topped with a shallow chamfer with which merges into steps and squat, pyramidal headed corner piers.
Beyond this, the base is grass covered and gently slopes down to granite coped edging, around which is the ditch or ha-ha.
William Sharman-Crawford(1781-1861) was the local landlord and owner of the Rademon House estate on which the monument stands, an estate which, through marriage, passed to his family in 1814. Sharman (who added his wife's surname Crawford to his own, in 1805, and also held lands in north County Down and County Cork) was a radical MP for Dundalk, 1835-37, and for Rochdale, 1841-52. He retired from public life in 1852 after defeat in the County Down election.The original farm buildings remain, as does an old bridge.
There is a fine corn mill, house and outbuildings.
The gate lodge of ca 1820 is gone.
Rademon estate was eventually purchased by Lieutenant-Commander James Osborne King DSC DL RN, whose family lived there until ca 1999.
Shortcross Gin is distilled at the Rademon Estate by David and Fiona Boyd-Armstrong.
First published in May, 2010.
First published in May, 2010.
4 comments :
Sorry for delay - just now know how to post! You know of the Royal connection to Rademon? James Osborne King's mother-in-law was a Spencer and was a 'lady of the bedchamber' to Queen Mother. Patrica King (nee White) therefore grew up with the Queen who visited Rademon privately on visits here. One of JOK's business partner in the old Osborne King & Megran included John Williams Ellis of the (Clough) architect / Portmeirion / pottery / sculpting / quarrying dynsaty. He was a lovely man who lived between Dromore and Hillsborough. OK&M did some classy contents auctions including contents of Portavo House (Ker's) in 80s. As a student I remember portering a Storr punch bowl which made a fair price
Re: Sir David Reid, Rademon House.
I have heard an old tale that Sir David and Lady Reid had to vacate Rademon House rather hurriedly during the troubles of the 1920's and that the place was subsequently attacked by dissident republicans.
can anyone verify this please as it would confirm an old family tale which has been circulating for over 70 years.
I am descended from John Neilson and Grace Rodgers who emigrated to Canada 1838. In a history by their daughter was a comment that they lived on the Rademon estate which John had inherited from his grandmother Elizabeth johnson because his father rev. Moses preferred to remain with his ministry.and that he resided there for years as a country gentleman but his love of horses and his hospitality and extravagance impaired his wealth so that he had to part with it. Is this the same estate or was there another Johnson estate.
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