Guysmere – A brief history Castlerock, County Londonderry
The earliest identification of Guysmere as a site is to be found in Griffith`s Valuation Map c. 1859, where it is designated at Plot 2.
At that time, the plot lay within the Clothworkers’ portion where it remained until Sir Hervey H. Bruce purchased the Clothworkers’ County Londonderry estates in 1871.
The first mention of a house on this site is in The Revision Valuation Book for 1862-64 which states that the Immediate Lessors are “The Worshipful Company of Clothworkers” and shows that John Nimmock was the occupier of the house which was, at that time, unfinished.
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The Valuation Book information must have been collected in early 1862 for by May of that year, John Nimock was advertising the property to let. He states that this property –
“has one advantage over every other house at CASTLEROCK – there are no houses to pass after you come out of the water until you enter the Villa”.
In its early days the property was known as ‘Bathview Villa’.
John Nimock was a local photographer who hailed from the Gortycavan/Sconce Road area south of Articlave. He described himself as an artist and, unusually for a local man of those times, he was widely travelled and had business interests in America.
Their marriage was a relatively brief one as John Nimock died in March 1884 at his residence, `Bathview`. After that time, Martha with their young son, also John, variously spent her time in America (where John had his business interests and property) and at ‘Bathview Villa’ in Castlerock.
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In 1903, Martha took the decision to settle permanently in America and ‘Bathview Villa’ was advertised for sale in June/July of that year.
The newspaper clipping from 1st July, 1903 (supplied by John Gilfillan, an American descendant of Mrs. Martha Nimock), has been annotated to the effect `Bought later (in perpetuity) from Lord Bruce`
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The eventual purchaser was Mr Frederick A. Guy, a farmer from Drumlish House, Dromore, Co Tyrone. Frederick Guy apparently continued to live variously in Dromore, Co. Tyrone and Londonderry and, like Martha Nimock before him, offered `Bathview Villa` as a `To Let`. 1905 1913
The name “Guy’s Mere” or “Guysmere”
It is thanks to Frederick Guy that we now know the site as `Guysmere`.
Sometime between 1907 and 1910, he changed the property`s title to reflect his own name as can be seen from the lists of residents below.
In the 1907 Street Directory we have Mr F.A. Guy, J.P. of Bathview Villa but by 1910, he is listed as Mr F.A. Guy J.P of “Guy’s mere”.
Frederick Guy died on 24 September 1921 and the property passed to Miss Edith Guy.
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The disastrous blaze of 1922 The 1918 Street Directory shows Herbert Fletcher as living at Guysmere. Herbert was a member of the Fletcher family who were prosperous merchants from Derry. It was Herbert Fletcher and his family who were resident in Guysmere on the night of 19 June, 1922 when there was a disastrous fire.
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After the fire, the Guy family lodged a claim for malicious destruction with Coleraine Council.
Some time later Miss Guy (Edith) sold the ruin to Mr A.J. Cunningham, sole proprietor of Cunningham Hotels Limited. By 1926, his portfolio included the Abercorn Arms in Strabane, the Corporation Arms in Coleraine and the Golf Hotel in Castlerock and it may be that he acquired the Guysmere site with a view to developing another hotel. In the event he did nothing with the site and it lay derelict until it was acquired by the P.C.I / B.A.
1926 The first Boys’ Auxiliary Camp was held in Guysmere
1975 The Residential Centre was dedicated
2009 The Centre was closed
2017 A proposal to sell Guysmere was stalled for 1 year by the Presbytery of Coleraine & Limavady
2018 The General Assembly decides what to do next
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