THE
EARLY YEARS
The
White House was so called because the
building had a limestone rendering which
made it a navigation marker for ships
coming up the lough. It was first shown on
a map in 1569 and a 'noate" records it was
given by Queen Elizabeth I to a Mr
Brunker. Late in her reign there was a
major rising in Ulster led by O'Neill and
O'Donnell. When they were defeated much of
the land was confiscated and the new King
James I sent Sir Arthur Chichester to
assess the situation. He recommended that
new loyal settlers be brought from England
and Scotland as many had already come to
Antrim and Down.
They
were to build fortified bawns like the
White House. Soldiers who had served in
Ireland were given land on generous terms
as were Scottish landlords who would bring
settlers with them to start a new life.
Chichester himself received a great area
of land including The White House. The
land behind it on the slopes of the Cave
Hill became his hunting estate.
In 1636
the building was occupied by a merchant
named Thomas Boyde, a friend of Captain
Blood, who may have given him shelter
after his attempt to steal the Crown
Jewels. By 1666 Hercules Daviss is
recorded as having paid taxes on four
hearths and The White House through many
hands in the years that followed.
