Brooklyn House, Knock Road, Belfast

Brooklyn House on Knock Road, Belfast was once a grand residence. Today, the sloping wooded grounds are home to Headquarters of the Police Service of Northern Ireland. During the Second World War, the site held a different type of prisoner.

The house stood only a few minutes’ walk from the Knock Railway Station in secluded, wooded grounds. The approach to the building was through a gate lodge and along a wide tree-lined driveway.

Inside, the residence contained an entrance porch and hall, a lounge with door through to the gardens a dining room with a bay window, a study, a morning room, a cloakroom, and a separate WC. There were 5 main bedrooms, 2 maids’ bedrooms, and a box room. For cooking, there was a large kitchen, a working scullery, larder, and wash house. Large grounds surrounded Brooklyn House, with an enclosed yard, fuel stores, stables, a gardener’s cottage, and a garage large enough for several cars.

Brooklyn House in 1943

The 1943 Belfast Street Directory lists the occupant of Brooklyn Lodge as His Majesty’s Government. The neighbouring Brooklyn and Rosemount properties follow suit. Towards the end of the Second World War, Brooklyn House was a Prisoner of War Camp. Like many other such camps across Northern Ireland, the site was next to the main railway line. The old Belfast and Co. Down Railway line is now the Comber Greenway.

At 1400hrs on 3rd September 1946, JD Nicholl and Co. Ltd of 43-47 Chichester Street, Belfast held an auction at Brooklyn House. For sale were the remnants of the Prisoner of War Camp. Potential buyers were able to view the goods from 1000hrs on the morning of the sale.

Shortly after the auction, adverts appeared in the local press seeking reliable general help to work for the Hunter family. The family advertised again in September that year. In the post-war years, Brooklyn House was home to Mr. Andrew Hunter, his wife, and daughters. Hunter’s business affairs meant he spent months at a time out of the country. July 1948 saw him return from 6 months in Australia.

Post-war life at Brooklyn House

On 3rd September 1947, Miss Marie Fraser Hunter married Lieutenant William Frederick Bustin of the Somerset Light Infantry in Knock Presbyterian Church. The same venue was the setting when on 26th February 1949, Miss Ethel Gordon Hunter married Mr. Austin Edward Pierce of Orpington, Kent.

At 1500hrs, on 10th February 1948, a further auction took place at Brooklyn House. On sale on this occasion were 25,000 wooden boxes ranging in size from 16″ x 10″ x 9″ to 50″ x 8″ x 8″. JD Nicholl and Co. Ltd. again held the auction. Potential buyers were able to view the goods from 1000hrs on the morning of the sale.

In May 1948, the family sought a Head Gardener. A similar newspaper classified for the same role also appeared in newspapers in November 1948. Perhaps the role of this gardener was to restore the grounds to their former glory and remove any last traces of the wartime camp.

On 6th June 1949, the Belfast Newsletter advertised the property for sale. All traces of any wartime activity were gone. As well as the house, the advert promoted the extensive pleasure gardens, boasting lawns, tennis court, flower beds, and an ornamental rockery with water features. There was also a kitchen garden, an orchard, and several more acres of land.

Following the marriages of both daughters, the Hunter family sold Brooklyn House. The advert for the sale of the “Compact Gentleman’s Residence and Grounds” appeared in the Belfast Newsletter on 6th June 1949. At some point, the Royal Ulster Constabulary purchased the site and it has remained in police use since. Newspapers in 1961 carried news of a fire that broke out in the roofing while the new RUC Headquarters was under construction. Today, the site remains the Headquarters of the now Police Service of Northern Ireland.