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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`.

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.

1905 1913

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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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