The West Wing, Houston House, Houston, Renfrewshire Offers in excess of £699,000

Situation

Houston House lies at the centre of an historic estate on the edge of the charming conservation village of Houston within private woodlands and policies in a naturally beautiful area of countryside south of the River Clyde in West Renfrewshire.
A Bronze Age burial site was found at the South Mound on the western edges of Houston and to the north east lies Barochan Hill, the site of a Roman fort. The village’s Mercat Cross dates back to the 14th century and has been used as a symbol for the village. The mainstay of Houston between the 17th and 19th century was weaving and the nearby River Gryffe powered a cotton spinning industry.
Houston’s historic village centre is a designated conservation area and is home to village pubs, restaurants, a micro brewery, small shops and the village’s post office.
Nearby schools include two excellent primary schools in Houston, with Gryffe High School providing highly rated secondary education. Independent schooling is available at St Columba’s School in nearby Kilmacolm, consistently one of Scotland’s most successful schools in examination league table results.
Houston is well placed for commuting with excellent road access to Inverclyde, the Ayrshire coast, local marinas, equestrian facilities, fishings and country parks, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, Glasgow Airport, the M8 motorway and Glasgow City Centre. There is a railway station at Johnstone with ample car parking and regular and frequent services.

Description

Historical note
The history of Houston House starts in the reign of King Malcolm IV, with the grant of the barony of Kilpeter (afterwards Houston) from Baldwin of Biggar, Sheriff of Lanark to Hugo de Padvinan, a Knight Templar who died in 1190 and is on record as one of the witnesses to the foundation charter of the Abbey of Paisley in 1160.
The village where Hugo settled adopted the name of “Hews town” or Houstoun. His heirs and successors came to be known as Houstoun and many generations of knights of that family are recorded in Houston and Killellan Kirk, including Sir Patrick who was buried in 1450 and has his effigy and monument there; also his son and heir Sir Peter who was killed along with the flower of Scotland’s nobility at Flodden in 1593. In 1468 King James II re-granted ‘John de Houstoun Nelbir-maynis (the modern North Mains farm) with the castle, woods and park of Houston’. Today’s house incorporates part of the building that the Houstouns erected and which was for some time occupied by the Lennox family after the Houstouns moved their ancestral seat to Johnstone. Matthew, fourth Earl of Lennox, was the father of Lord Darnley, who married Mary, Queen of Scots in 1565, the day after he was created King of Scotland. Darnley was murdered in 1567 when the house he was visiting was blown up. The Earl of Lennox, according to Froude’s History of England, “not daring to repair to Edinburgh, remained watching the direction of events from his house at Houston, Renfrewshire; and from thence he replied to the Queen’s letter with a demand that she should instantly assemble the entire nobility of the realm to investigate the extraordinary catastrophe”.
The First Statistical Account of Scotland (1791 -1799) describes the old castle at Houston as “very ancient, there was a large and very high tower on the north west corner, which was the most ancient part of the building, with a lower house joined to the east end of the tower, with vaults below, and a very long and wide paved hall above with antique windows in the front and without plaster in the roof. The timbers of the roof were arched and made of oak. It was a complete square with a large area in the inside. On the front to the south were two turrets between which was the grand entry into the area, arched above and secured by a portcullis. This building was a real fortification, being large and built on an elevated situation it had a lordly appearance overlooking the plain towards Paisley and Glasgow”.
The Houstons retained the barony until 1740. Over the next 40 years it went by sale or inheritance to five different proprietors. The estate was initially sold to James Macrae, who, as an orphaned and destitute Ayrshire child, went on to make his name and fortune in India with the East India Company, was a heroic sea captain who survived a number of notable battles with pirates, and who was appointed Governor of Madras from 1725 to 1730. He died without issue, but left the estate to his cousin’s son, James McGuire, on condition that he changed his name to Macrae. James McGuire Macrae’s eldest son, also called James, demolished the old castle at Houston in 1780. Three sides of the castle were demolished and the stone was given for the building of the new planned village of Houston, to be built further away from what Macrae envisaged would be a grand modem mansion house. The village was built, but the mansion was not. Two years later, in 1782, Macrae sold the title to Alexander Speirs of Elderslie. Macrae was later indicted for the murder of a nobleman in a pistol duel on Musselburgh Links fought over a matter of honour but fled to exile in France prior to his trial. He was declared an outlaw and never returned. For 50 years the surviving, – Palace Wing – (as it was known in the Lennox era) of the old castle or the present – West Wing – (as it is now known) was left roofless and derelict until it was renovated as a shooting lodge in the 1830s.
Alexander Speirs (1714-1782) was a prominent tobacco merchant at a time when much of the British and European tobacco trade was handled by a few Glasgow merchants. He was one of the richest of the so-called Glasgow Tobacco Lords. In an official return of 1772, his name topped the list of 46 tobacco merchants, and he was handling one-eighth of all the tobacco entering Glasgow and one-fifteenth of the total entering Britain. The outbreak of the American War of Independence brought much of his trade to a close, but at the same time increased the price of tobacco by nearly 1000%, bringing incredible wealth to those merchants whose businesses survived.
Speirs used his enormous fortune to purchase several adjoining estates in Renfrewshire and took out a Crown Charter, in which these were combined, under the title of The Barony of Elderslie. He built a splendid new mansion, Elderslie House, on the former Inch estate (near the modern day Braehead developments) which became the family’s principal seat.
In 1867, Alexander Speirs’ great grandson, Archibald Speirs, who had recently been elected MP for the county, married Lady Anne Bouverie, a daughter of the Earl of Radnor. Within a few months of the marriage he died of typhoid, contracted from the Clyde, and his heir, Archie Hagart Speirs, was born posthumously in 1869. On the death of her father-in-law, Lady Anne gave up Elderslie House. She and the infant Archie moved to Houston and in 1872 she started enlarging the shooting lodge based on the surviving West Wing of the old castle. A new mansion was constructed to the design of David Thompson, incorporating the remains of the old castle and subsequently, between 1893 and 1895, Lady Anne commissioned Thompson to make extensive additions including stables, offices and a 113 feet high tower.
The house was occupied as a single residence by the Speirs family, and its descendants the Crichton Maitland family, until 1994. Some features of the old castle can still be seen, especially the corbelling of the battlements on the north east side and in the interior of the West Wing.
Description
Houston House was divided and fully refurbished between 1994 and 1997, forming six unique and individual residences within this historic mansion house. The elegant West Wing is on three levels and besides modern facilities incorporates some interesting elements of the old castle.
To the front of the property there is a small private garden and the West Wing shares the six acre communal grounds which are professionally maintained. There is a large gravelled terrace to the front and a rear car parking area. A large single garage is located to the East of the property.
Each residence benefits from joint ownership of the Great Hall which is situated in the main body of Houston House. The Great Hall includes many original features including an impressive grand entry hall, cornicing, stone archways, oak flooring and a fully operating period fireplace. It also has its own kitchen and toilet facilities and is regularly the venue for events, parties and concerts. There is also a grand piano owned jointly by the residents. Use of the Great Hall is by mutual consent with the other owners.
The West Wing is enhanced by beautiful open views of the surrounding gardens, a modern fitted kitchen with a fine range of base and wall mounted units, an elegant drawing room on the first floor and well proportioned apartments. The West Wing is a beautiful family home in walk-in condition retaining a wealth of period features.

Accommodation

Ground floor
Entrance portico
Engraved entrance portico (dated 1625) leading to
Reception hallway and staircase to drawing room
Under stair storage cupboard (electricity meters/switch box).
Utility room
Single bowl sink and plumbing for washing machine and tumble dryer.
Cloakroom/WC
Newly installed WC and wash hand basin. Tiled floor.
Kitchen
Fitted kitchen with a fine range of floor and wall mounted units with co-ordinating worktops and cornicing. One and a half bowl sink unit with mixer tap. Built in oven with four ring gas hob. Twin windows to front overlooking formal gardens. Ceiling spotlights. Steps at the rear of the kitchen lead to a secret stone stairway connecting the kitchen to the drawing room. The staircase is a remnant of the old castle and is currently used as a wine cellar.
Dining room
Formal dining room with decorative panelled ceiling, hardwood flooring, fully operational Flame master open fire place and carved oak fire surround.
Inner rear hallway
Cloakroom/store room
Off the inner hallway is a large, L-shaped store room with second exterior door, opening to front of house.
Cloakroom/WC
There is also a cloakroom with WC and pedestal wash hand basin. Dado rail. Tiled floor.
A staircase from the inner rear hallway leads to the upper floors. This features original wooden panelling banisters and ballustrading and porthole windows to the front of the house.
First floor
Drawing room
Beautiful dual aspect room with three sash and case windows to the front and two to the rear, all with original shutters, as well as additional porthole windows. The outlook to the front is over the gardens and to the church beyond. Cornicing, built in store cupboards and fully operational Inglenook open fire with carved fireplace with slate hearth. Door to secret stone staircase, part of the original castle.
Library
Twin sash and case windows overlooking gardens, terrace, Great Hall and beyond to the church. Fine range of built in bookcases. Cornicing. Store cupboard. Dedicated telephone line.
Inner hallway
Sitting room
Twin sash and case windows to front. Cornicing. White marble fire surround and marble hearth. Door to large shelved linen cupboard housing hot water tank and utilised as clothes drying room. Additional large store cupboard.
The staircase continues to the second floor.
Second floor
Bedroom 1
Well proportioned double bedroom with twin sash and case windows overlooking gardens. Built in fitted wardrobes and additional store cupboard. Picture rail. Coving.
Bedroom 2
Double bedroom with window overlooking gardens and beyond to church. Additional porthole window. Coving. Built in fitted wardrobes.
Bathroom
WC, wash hand basin and bath with shower attachment and tiled surround. Spot lights. Dado rail.
Bedroom 3
Double bedroom with sash and case window to front. Picture rail. Coving. Store cupboard
Bedroom 4
Double bedroom with sash and case window to front. Picture rail. Coving.
Bathroom
Family bathroom with WC, wash hand basin, bath and tiled shower cubicle. Ceiling spotlights. Store cupboard. Tiled floor.
Walk in Linen cupboard/ wardrobe
Large linen cupboard providing excellent storage and hanging space.
Boilers
Large walk in cupboard housing two recently installed gas fired condensing boilers for water and central heating.
Garden
There is a private garden to the front of the property, mainly lawned, with evergreens, flowerbeds and patio dining area.
Communal grounds
The title to the front lawn is retained by Elderslie Estates and it and the remaining communally owned grounds are professionally maintained, the latter shared by the six properties within Houston House. The front gardens are level, lawned and are screened by a wide variety of mature trees and shrubs which provide excellent privacy. The only other buildings that are visible are Houston and Killellan Kirk and the West Lodge at the estate entrance. The stained glass windows of the church are often illuminated at night and present a beautiful picturesque appearance.
The cultivated gardens to the side and rear include areas of ancient woodland, a beautiful ornamental pond and a wide range of evergreens, and oak and other deciduous trees with beech hedge surround. There is an additional area of woodland to the rear. There are beautiful walks over the fields and through the woods of the Elderslie Estate policies and round the old fishing lake a few hundred metres from the house. The policies are frequently used for equestrian events and there are permanent jumps constructed around the fields and woods.
The sweeping entrance driveway leads to a large gravelled terrace at the front of the property, with an additional driveway leading to garaging and an additional car park area at the rear of the house.
Garage
To the rear of the house is a garage block with pitched slated roof. A large single garage within this block of six garages is owned by the West Wing. There is power and light and an overhead door. There is a communal car wash bay at the end of the garage block.
Bin Store
There is a separate communal bin store at the North end of the house. There are weekly collections of general and recycleable waste.

Directions

From Glasgow travel west on the M8 and continue beyond Glasgow Airport taking the Irvine turn off (A737). Take second slip road exit, following signs for Johnstone, Bridge of Weir and Houston. Turn right and continue along the B789 for Houston to beyond Crosslee, turning right at the roundabout into Houston Road. Continue along Houston Road and take the second turning on the left, then after 400 metres turn right into Kirk Road. Continue just beyond the church and turn right through the pillared entry gate into the driveway for Houston House. Continue up the driveway to the gravelled terrace at the front of the property.