Fardross House, Co Tyrone 

see https://lordbelmontinnorthernireland.blogspot.com/2013/04/fardross-house.html

THE GLEDSTANES’ OWNED 2,982 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY TYRONE 

This family, of Scottish extraction, was long settled at Fardross. 
 
In 1688, CAPTAIN JAMES GLEDSTANES equipped at his own expense a body of yeomen, and led them to the relief of Londonderry, for which he received a certificate, and the thanks of Governor Walker. 
 
His eldest son, 
 
JAMES GLEDSTANES, of Fardross, married Miss Graham, of Hockley, near Armagh, and left issue, 
 

Thomas; 
Anne; 
Mary, m A Johnston MP, of Rademon; 
MARGARET, of whom presently; 
Katherine, m C King MP, of St Angelo, Co Fermanagh. 

The third daughter and eventually co-heir,  
 
MARGARET GLEDSTANES, wedded, in 1767, MAJOR AMBROSE UPTON, 13th Dragoons, of Hermitage, County Dublin. 
 
They both died in 1804, leaving a son and daughter, 
 

WHITNEY UPTON, his heir; 
MARY ANNE CATHERINE, succeeded her brother. 

The only surviving son, 
 
WHITNEY UPTON, who took the name of GLEDSTANES, married firstly, in 1795, Isabella, daughter of the Rev Ancketell Moutray, of FAVOUR ROYAL, County Tyrone. 
 
She dsp. 
 
Mr Gledstanes wedded secondly, in 1799, Emily, daughter of Michael Aylmer, of Courtown, County Kildare, and by her, had, besides a daughter, Frances, who died 1818, an only surviving son, 
 

AMBROSE, of whom presently. 

MARY ANNE CATHERINE UPTON GLEDSTANES espoused, in 1793, John Corry Moutray DL, of FAVOUR ROYAL, County Tyrone, and had issue, 
 

MOUTRAY, of whom hereafter; 
Robert; 
Cecilia; Marion. 

The only surviving son of Mr Whitney Upton Gledstanes, 
 
AMBROSE UPTON GLEDSTANES JP DL (1802-71), High Sheriff of County Fermanagh, 1829, wedded, in 1828, Cecilia, daughter of Richard Hornidge DL, of Tulfarris, County Wicklow, and Elizabeth, his wife, daughter of Hugh Henry, of Lodge Park, County Kildare, but had no issue. 
 
He was succeeded by his cousin, 
 
MOUTRAY GLEDSTANES JP (1845-1917), of Fardross, County Tyrone, Captain, Royal Tyrone Fusiliers, who married, in 1874, Helen Catherine, daughter of John James Verschoyle, of Tassagart, County Dublin, by Catherine Helen his wife, daughter of the Rev W H Foster, and granddaughter of the Rt Rev William Foster, Lord Bishop of Clogher, and had issue, 
 

AMBROSE UPTON, his heir; 
Helen Margaret Catherine; Sophia Cecilia Marion. 

His only son,  
 
AMBROSE UPTON GLEDSTANES (1876-1957), Lieutenant-Colonel, 30th Lancers, married, in 1909, Adelaide Isabella, daughter of Major Robert Tankerville Webber (Welsh Fusiliers), by Isabella his wife, daughter of the Hon and Rev W Wingfield, Rector of Abbeyleix, Queen’s County. 
 FARDROSS HOUSE, near Clogher, County Tyrone, was built pre-1835 for Ambrose Upton Gledstanes. 
 
It was considerably more modest originally. 
 

Mr Gledstane’s father-in-law, Richard Hornidge, acquired Fardross, which was in a dilapidated state, not long afterwards, renovating and refurbishing the house, and adding a gate lodge.

The present house, with six bedrooms, sits in 300 acres. There is a courtyard. 
 
This is a rural demesne, dating from the 17th century on the River Blackwater, set in parkland, with fine mature trees, including some exotics. 
 
There is no evidence of an ornamental garden and the walled garden is not planted. 
 
The area is intensively farmed and private. 
 
Fardross Forest is adjacent with public access. 
 
First published in April, 2013. 

www.nihgt.org/resources/pdf/Register_of_Parks_Gardens_Demesnes-NOV20.pdf 

FARDROSS, County Tyrone (AP MID ULSTER 10) T/048 
REGISTERED GRADE B 
Regency era parkland (136 acres/55ha) with 17th century house (Listed HB 13/02/034) located 1.9 
miles (3.1km) south-west of Clogher and 4.87 miles (7.84km) north-east of Fivemiletown. The 
River Blackwater meanders through the demesne beginning in the south-east and flowing north 
towards the house and then west south of the house and then northwards. The long low two- 
storey gable-ended rectangular house, originally facing north, and appears to date to the 1670s 
when the land was leased by the Diocese of Clogher to James Gledstances I, who was involved in 
the relief of Derry in 1688. The house subsequently passed to his son James Gledstanes II (c.1690- 
c.1745); to his son Thomas Gledstanes (d. 1778) and then to his daughter, Katherine, married to 
Charles King (1737-c.1799), of St. Angelo, Co. Fermanagh, (MP for Swords 1776-83 and Belturbet 
1797-99). By 1804 the lease passed to Katherine’s nephew Whitney Upton, who assumed his 
mother’s maiden name of Gledstanes and appears to have been Whitney Upton Gledstances to 
planted the present parkland. There appear to be no traces of any formal late 17th or early 18th 
century layout, though one would have expected a straight avenue aligned on the north-east 
facade of the house. The tree planting of the early 1800s was focussed on the area around the 
house and offices to its south and on each side of the river Blackwater to the west and south-west 
of the house. These plantations, permitting the demesne to be called by the OS in 1835 as 
‘prettily wooded’, remain in place today; in addition the park was extended to the north-west and 
east by Moutray Vance (Hornidge) Gledstances (1845-1917), not long after he had inherited it 
from his uncle Ambrose Upton Gledstanes I (1802-71) in 1871. He laid down a new approach 
avenue from the Fardross-road on the north-east leading to the house front, now located at the 
east end of the building. This avenue has a simple iron-gate screen which appears to be of late 
19th century date; this has slim cast-iron piers with ball finials and wrought-iron carriage gates 
with ‘hooped’ railings. New plantations were put down along the river to the south and south- 
east of the house and isolated parkland trees planted in the meadows south, north and north east 
of the house. Many of these trees survive today as very fine, mature trees. As one may have 
expected, some exotics were also included. There is an island in it south-east of the house and the 
river is crossed by a footbridge and other bridges in the north-western section. He also seems to 
have been responsible for refurbishing the house and for clearing away the old offices ranges 
south of the house and building a new complex of offices to the immediate west of the house 
arranged around two yards. Today there is a conservatory south of the house. Much of this work 
was no doubt made easier by the fact that the lease had been bought from the church around 
1869-70. He also added a new rectangular walled garden south-west of the house (0.87 
acres/0.35ha) with east-west axis and potting sheds on the south wall; this has currently been 
adapted as a farm yard; the earlier pre-1870s kitchen garden, probably enclosed by a hedge, lay 
south of the house and river. In 1917 Fardross was inherited by Moutray’s his eldest son, 
Ambrose Upton Gledstanes II (1876-1957). At some point in or just before 1973 the demesne and 
wider estate was sold to Robert Grosvenor, 5th Duke of Westminster (1910-79) and farmed. The 
whole property was acquired by the Department of Agriculture (DAERA, Forest Service) before 
1990 and part of the demesne is now a forest park open to the public, with most of the demesne 
land farmed. The house privately occupied. There is a platform rath in the vicinity. SMR: TYR 
64:33 

Register of Parks, Gardens and Demesnes of Special Historic Interest (NI) – November 2020