HomeGlencairn Park
Address: Glencairn Road, Belfast, BT13 8SQEntrance to the park is via Glencairn Road. If you are travelling by bus from Belfast city centre, take Metro no.11 B-D.
Situated at the bottom of Divis Mountain, Glencairn Park in north Belfast is a large open space with beautiful mature trees and woodland.
The site, the former home of the Cunningham family, opened as a public park in 1962. Today, the park is very popular with walkers, joggers and cyclists due to its location amongst the Belfast Hills.
Part of the original estate, Fernhill House, is still standing today. Other features include a children's playground, scenic views and walking routes.
Opening hours
All our parks open at 7.30am daily. Closing times vary according to the time of year - check full opening hours for parksContact details
For more information about the park, call 028 9031 9629 or 07860 461955 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 4.30pm only) or email largeym@belfastcity.gov.ukHistory
The Glencairn estate originally covered more than 100 acres of land at the bottom of Divis Mountain. It included four houses - Glencairn and Fernhill, which stood on either side of a sloping valley, Glendivis, situated between the Ballygomartin River and Glencairn Road (just beyond the present entrance to the park), and Four Winds, located further along the Glencairn Road.The largest houses, Glencairn and Fernhill, were also served by modest mid-19th century gate lodges.
The Cunningham family came from Scotland to Ireland during the plantation and settled at Killead, about ten miles north-west of Belfast. They were involved in the West Indian trade, as well as the tobacco, stockbroking and insurance industries.
In 1899, Samuel Cummingham moved into Fernhill House, which had great views of Belfast, the Mourne Mountains and even the family's home country of Scotland.
The Cunningham family eventually moved to Glencairn House and lived on the estate for most of the 20th century. Glencairn and Fernhill Houses were surrounded by extensive lawns, gravel pathways, mature trees, formal gardens, vegetable plots, a croquet lawn, shrub borders and a rock garden.
An ancient rath or fort, around 120 feet in diameter with ramparts and a surrounding trench, was located behind Fernhill House. The trench was filled in and used as a ring for training horses while the Cumminghams lived on the estate.
Both Glencairn and Fernhill Houses were damaged during World War II. When Colonel Cunningham returned home after the war, he found Glencairn House empty and abandoned and his family living in part of Fernhill House.
The estate was eventually acquired by the Belfast Corporation (now the council) in 1962 and re-opened as a public park.
