Location: Off Gilnahirk Road, BT5
Council District: Originally Castlereagh Borough Council; now Belfast City Council
Date Named: Elsmere Park – mid-1950s (in use by 1960); Elsmere Heights and Elsmere Manor – mid-2000s
Possible Origin of Name:
The reason for the choice of the name Elsmere is uncertain. It may have been selected by post-war developers for its refined or English-sounding character, echoing names such as Ellesmere in Shropshire. Another, though unproven, possibility is that it was inspired by the surname Elsmere, which appears in 19th-century records for the Gilnahirk and Knockbreda area. Two “Misses Elsmere” were noted as small landholders in Griffith’s Valuation (c.1863). Whether the modern street name consciously recalls that family or was simply a coincidence of naming remains unclear.
Historical Background:
Before suburbanisation, Gilnahirk consisted mainly of farmland and smallholdings on Belfast’s rural fringe. In the 1950s, growing housing demand led to the creation of small bungalow developments along Gilnahirk Road.
A Belfast Telegraph property advertisement of 29 September 1960 already lists “Elsmere Park, Gilnahirk,” describing it as “a quiet residential park.” This indicates that Elsmere Park was both named and occupied by that date, suggesting a mid- to late-1950s origin.
The adjoining streets Elsmere Heights and Elsmere Manor were added around 2005–2007, developed by Taren Developments NI Ltd on remaining farmland. Their names followed the established “Elsmere” theme and were approved through Castlereagh Borough Council’s standard street-naming process.
Summary:
Elsmere Park – mid-1950s bungalow estate; earliest documented reference 1960.
Elsmere Heights & Elsmere Manor – mid-2000s extensions by Taren Developments.
Name origin – uncertain; possibly from an old local surname or chosen for its genteel sound.
Primary source – Belfast Telegraph, 29 September 1960, property advertisements section.
References:
Belfast Telegraph, 29 Sept 1960, “Property Advertisements.”
Griffith’s Valuation (c.1863) – “Misses Elsmere,” landholders, parish of Knockbreda.
Castlereagh Borough Council / Belfast City Council street-naming records.
Companies House filings for Taren Developments NI Ltd (developer, 2000s).
Aidan Campbell, Gilnahirk (East Belfast Historical Society, 2009).