The Belfast And Province Of Ulster Directory 1863-1864 lists Kensington House as part of a wider entry: "James P. Corry & Co., timber merchants and shipowners; residences, James P. Corry, 1, Upper Crescent; John Corry, jun., 2, Lower Crescent ; John Corry, sen., 138, York Street; Robert W. Corry, Kensington House, Knock". It is likely this street name can be traced back to the name Kensington House.
Kensington Road, Kensington Gardens, and Kensington Park (Knock, East Belfast)
These adjoining streets take their names from Kensington House, a mid-19th century villa built near Knock railway station and first advertised in 1862. The house, occupied by Robert W. Corry of the shipping family James P. Corry & Co., was one of the earliest residences in the area to carry the prestigious “Kensington” name, borrowed from the fashionable London district.
Originally known as Knock Avenue Road, the main road was officially renamed Kensington Road in 1901 at the request of the owners of Kensington House and Kensington Villa.As the estate lands were subdivided, new streets adopted the theme: Kensington Gardens and Kensington Park appear in the 1918 Belfast Street Directory, laid out on what had been the gardens and grounds of Kensington House. During the 1920s, houses and even a plant nursery were established on Kensington Gardens, while villas were developed on Kensington Park. In 1930, Belfast Corporation approved the name Kensington Parade for a short street off Kensington Gardens, further cementing the theme. By the early 20th century, “Kensington” had become a well-established local identity in Knock, with the streets preserving the legacy of the original Kensington House.
Sources: Belfast directories (1863–1918), Northern Whig (1862), Belfast City Council minutes (1930).
"Resolved — That on the application of the owner, Mrs. S. A. Robinson, Donard, Antrim Road, a new street on her property at Knock be named Kensington Park". (23rd February 1909).