Lisburn House, built in 1864 for James Fulton in the Dunedin suburb of Caversham, is a striking townhouse notable for its steeply pitched gable roof and polychromatic brick decoration. Lisburn House is architecturally significant as a gentleman’s residence designed by prominent partnership Mason and Clayton, and historically significant as an early Caversham building and for its association with the Fulton family.
James Fulton’s main residence was ‘Ravenscliffe’, his farm at West Taieri, but he and other members of the well-connected Fulton family needed to travel to Dunedin for business and social occasions. James, his brothers Robert and Francis, and their mother formed a tight family network centred on West Taieri, with Lisburn House as a city base. Francis Fulton seems to have lived at Lisburn House, as he worked in the city.
Lisburn House was named for the Fulton home near Belfast in Ireland. The one and a half storey house is brick with a slate roof. Polychromatic brickwork has been used to make patterns on the exterior walls and it has a number of steep gables. Inside, the entrance hall has marble floors with a winding staircase and the original oval fireplace. Architect and historian John Stacpoole describes Lisburn House as a ‘finely proportioned house with gabled roofs and restrained decorative patterns in its mellow brick walls.’
Lisburn House seems to have been let from around the 1880s. After James’ death in 1891, and Francis’ departure for Napier in 1892, the house was let again. The Fultons sold the property in 1903 to Agnes Story, and she and her husband George lived there until his death in 1930. The house was tenanted again in the 1930s. After Agnes’ death in 1944, the land around Lisburn House was subdivided for residential development on newly formed Lisburn Avenue. Although the house lost its generous garden, its striking design means it remains a landmark in Caversham, clearly visible from the Southern Motorway.
Lisburn House remained a private residence for much of the twentieth century. Since the 1990s, it has provided bed and breakfast accommodation. In 2000, Lisburn House became home to a boutique restaurant and luxury bed and breakfast, and it remains so in 2014.
James Fulton’s main residence was ‘Ravenscliffe’, his farm at West Taieri, but he and other members of the well-connected Fulton family needed to travel to Dunedin for business and social occasions. James, his brothers Robert and Francis, and their mother formed a tight family network centred on West Taieri, with Lisburn House as a city base. Francis Fulton seems to have lived at Lisburn House, as he worked in the city.
Lisburn House was named for the Fulton home near Belfast in Ireland. The one and a half storey house is brick with a slate roof. Polychromatic brickwork has been used to make patterns on the exterior walls and it has a number of steep gables. Inside, the entrance hall has marble floors with a winding staircase and the original oval fireplace. Architect and historian John Stacpoole describes Lisburn House as a ‘finely proportioned house with gabled roofs and restrained decorative patterns in its mellow brick walls.’
Lisburn House seems to have been let from around the 1880s. After James’ death in 1891, and Francis’ departure for Napier in 1892, the house was let again. The Fultons sold the property in 1903 to Agnes Story, and she and her husband George lived there until his death in 1930. The house was tenanted again in the 1930s. After Agnes’ death in 1944, the land around Lisburn House was subdivided for residential development on newly formed Lisburn Avenue. Although the house lost its generous garden, its striking design means it remains a landmark in Caversham, clearly visible from the Southern Motorway.
Lisburn House remained a private residence for much of the twentieth century. Since the 1990s, it has provided bed and breakfast accommodation. In 2000, Lisburn House became home to a boutique restaurant and luxury bed and breakfast, and it remains so in 2014.
Lisburn House. Image courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org | James Dignan | 03/04/2009 | James Dignan - Wikimedia Commons
Lisburn House. Image courtesy of www.lisburn.co.nz | Unknown | lisburn.co.nz
Lisburn House. Image courtesy of www.flickr.com | Shelley Morris - Madam48 | Shelley Morris - Madam48
Lisburn House. Image courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org | James Dignan | 03/04/2009 | James Dignan - Wikimedia Commons
Lisburn House. Image courtesy of www.lisburn.co.nz | Unknown | lisburn.co.nz
Lisburn House. Image courtesy of www.flickr.com | Shelley Morris - Madam48 | Shelley Morris - Madam48
