An estate is a large parcel of land under single ownership, which generates income for its owner.
60-624: The Stormont Estate is an estate in the east of Belfast in Northern Ireland . It is the site of Northern Ireland's main Parliament Buildings , which is surrounded by woods and parkland, and is often referred to in contemporary media as the metonym "Stormont". The Stormont Estate is within the townland of Ballymiscaw. The Stormont Estate was established by the Reverend John Cleland (1755–1834) in
120-823: A housing estate or industrial estate . Large country estates were traditionally found in New York's Long Island , and Westchester County , the Philadelphia Main Line , Maine's Bar Harbor on Mount Desert Island , and other affluent East Coast enclaves; and the San Francisco Bay Area , early Beverly Hills, California , Montecito, California , Santa Barbara, California and other affluent West Coast enclaves. All these regions had strong traditions of large agricultural, grazing, and productive estates modeled on those in Europe. However, by
180-592: A Portland stone façade to complete its stripped Classical design. After the Second World War (1939–1945), the bombed out centres of many English towns and cities, such as Plymouth , Bristol , Coventry and London were reconstructed using vast facades of Portland stone. Many of the buildings surrounding the flagship Parkinson Building at the University of Leeds are clad in Portland stone, including
240-426: A gas. Calcium and bicarbonate ions within the water are then able to combine, to form calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ) as a precipitate. The process of limescale build up in a kettle in hard-water areas is similar. Calcium carbonate is the principal constituent of most limestones. Billions of minute crystals of precipitated calcium carbonate (called calcite ) accumulated forming lime mud (called micrite ) which covered
300-493: A machine. Slots are cut into the top, bottom, sides and middle of the stone. A flat steel pillow is inserted into the middle cut and slowly inflated with water. The stones are gently broken off at the back without placing any stress on the resulting blocks. This method of extraction is significantly more expensive than blasting, but results in a higher yield thereby saving valuable reserves for future generations. The environmental benefits are substantial as mining significantly reduces
360-659: A popularity amongst masons and architects that has endured ever since. The East side of Buckingham Palace , the official London residence of King Charles III , including the balcony, was faced with Portland stone, first in 1854 and again in 1913. The Victoria Memorial (unveiled 1911) is also made of it. Inigo Jones (1573–1652) used Portland stone to build the Banqueting Hall in Whitehall in 1620. Sir Christopher Wren used nearly one million cubic feet to rebuild St. Paul's Cathedral and many other minor churches after
420-454: A two-storey administration block to its east was finished by 1939. A flat-roofed single-storey extension was added in about 1975. It was listed as a historic building in 1987. Parliament Buildings at Stormont were designed by Sir Arnold Thornely in Greek classical style. They were opened by Edward, Prince of Wales , later King Edward VIII, in 1932. The main approach to Parliament Buildings
480-455: Is Rufus Castle at Church Ope Cove, Portland. The original structure was probably built around 1080, rebuilt around 1259 and rebuilt yet again around 1450, which is the likely date of the walls seen today. The first known Portland stone quarries were situated on the northeastern coast of the Isle, close to Rufus Castle, where huge landslips made the stone more easily accessible, and the proximity of
540-624: Is along Prince of Wales Avenue. On this road stands a bronze statue of the barrister and Unionist politician, Lord Carson , on a stone plinth and base. This was erected in 1933 and designed by the sculptor Leonard Stanford Merrifield . Detached two-storey stone lodges and gate screens to Stormont Estate were built about 1932, on the Upper Newtownards Road and on Massey Avenue. They were designed by Sir Arnold Thornely. Both were listed as historic structures in 1987. A single-storey hipped roof Neo-Georgian style pavilion located on
600-755: Is also built with Portland stone, as are the public buildings in Cardiff's civic centre. Architect Charles Holden significantly used the stone in his major commissions of the 1920s and 1930s, including Senate House and 55 Broadway , the home of the London Underground . The 1929 steel framed building (one of the first erected in the United Kingdom) of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine , based in Keppel Street, has
660-467: Is also worth noting that stone tends to split much more easily parallel to bedding planes (called graining) than perpendicular to them (called cutting). In 1999, Italian stone cutting equipment, originally designed for use in Tuscany 's marble quarries was imported by Albion Stone and applied to the extraction of Portland stone. This new technology eliminated the need for blasting, significantly improved
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#1732772352880720-420: Is in the international style. The tomb of Viscount Craigavon , the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland , and his wife, Cecil, is on the east side of Parliament Buildings. It is a solid block of Portland limestone with stepped top and corners on a shallow plinth base, set on a stepped platform. The tomb was designed by Roland Ingleby Smit and was completed in 1942. The Stormont Estate grounds are open to
780-621: Is privately owned by Portland Stone Firms. Open cast quarrying provides quicker extraction of raw block dimension stone whilst maintaining its integrity. The majority of buildings in London today use Portland which has been quarried using the same methods over the last 60 years. Broadcroft Quarry is located on the eastern side of the island and is a part of the open cast quarries used for St Paul's Cathedral. Privately owned by Portland Stone Firms Limited there are over 20 years of reserves left and still being actively quarried. The coastal strip toward
840-404: Is similar to the way in which a snowball grows in size as it is rolled around in the snow. Over time, countless billions of these balls, known as " ooids " or "ooliths" (from the Greek for "egg-shaped" or "egg-stone"), became partially cemented together (or lithified) by more calcite, to form the oolitic limestone that is called Portland stone. The degree of cementation in Portland stone is such that
900-598: The Government of Northern Ireland to purchase the 224-acre Stormont Estate for about £21,000; this included 100 acres of woodland. Stormont Castle became the headquarters of the Government of Northern Ireland. Stormont Castle also became the official residence of the Prime Minister of Northern Ireland . Ralph Knott designed Stormont House in a Neo-Georgian style . The house was completed in 1926, and
960-524: The Great Fire of London in 1666. All of the stone used by Wren was transported by sailing barge from Portland to the centre of London via the sea and then up the Thames. Wren's widespread use of Portland stone firmly established it as London's "local stone" and as one of the best-loved British building stones. Other famous London buildings constructed of Portland stone are The British Museum (1753) with
1020-877: The Michael Sadler Building, the Chemistry and Engineering buildings and the new Laidlaw Library. Oxford typically uses oolitic limestone in its buildings, and the Ashmolean Museum has been refurbished using a large amount of Portland stone. Portland stone has also been used across the world. Examples include the UN building in New York, the Casino Kursaal in Belgium and the Auckland War Memorial Museum . Most of
1080-538: The Ministry of Finance . These were eventually amended and the regulations currently in force are: 54°35′58″N 5°50′12″W / 54.59944°N 5.83667°W / 54.59944; -5.83667 Estate (land) In the United Kingdom , historically an estate comprises the houses, outbuildings, supporting farmland, tenanted buildings, and natural resources (such as woodland) that surround
1140-729: The Tithonian age of the Late Jurassic that is quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset , England. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles , notably in major public buildings in London such as St Paul's Cathedral and Buckingham Palace . Portland stone is also exported to many countries, being used for example at
1200-528: The United Nations headquarters in New York City. Portland stone formed in a marine environment, on the floor of a shallow, warm, sub-tropical sea probably near land (as evidenced by fossilised driftwood, which is not uncommon). When seawater is warmed by the sun, its capacity to hold dissolved gas is reduced; consequently, dissolved carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is released into the atmosphere as
1260-666: The "New Build (Modern Non-Load-bearing Stone) Award" in the 2006 Natural Stone Awards. Portland stone has been designated by the International Union of Geological Sciences as a Global Heritage Stone Resource . Following the First World War, Sir Edwin Lutyens used Portland stone (quarried from the bottom of Wakeham) to construct the Cenotaph in London's Whitehall. Erected in 1920, The Cenotaph commemorates
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#17327723528801320-582: The 1930s. Manchester buildings with Portland stone exterior include 100 King Street (1935), Arkwright House (1937), St. James Buildings (1912), Manchester Central Library (1934), Kendal Milne (1939) and Sunlight House (1932). Two of Liverpool's Three Graces , the Cunard Building and the Port of Liverpool Building , are clad in Portland stone which surrounds their reinforced concrete frames. The Nottingham Council House , completed in 1929,
1380-575: The Norman era, hunting had always been a popular pastime with the British royalty and nobility, and dating from the medieval era, land was parcelled off and put aside for the leisurely pursuits of hunting. These originated as royal forests and chase land, eventually evolving into deer parks , or sometimes into the Royal Parks if owned by the royal family. The ownership of these estates for hunting
1440-571: The School of Ocean and Earth Sciences at Southampton University completed a detailed geological survey of Withies Croft Quarry before the Portland Beds were quarried by Albion Stone plc. Stone has been quarried on Portland since Roman times and was being shipped to London in the 14th century. Extraction as an industry began in the early 17th century, with shipments to London for Inigo Jones ' Banqueting House . Wren 's choice of Portland for
1500-518: The building of Chelsea Barracks , Wilkins Terrace at UCL University College London , St James's Market Haymarket, London and Green Park tube station . Portland stone is prevalent in Manchester despite the historical preferred use of hard-wearing materials, such as Burmantofts and sandstone to resist the harsh industrial environment. Portland stone was mostly used in Manchester during
1560-531: The country houses were destroyed , or land was parcelled off to be sold. An urban example of the use of the term estate is presented by the "great estates" in Central London such as the Grosvenor and Portman , which continue to generate significant income through rent. Sometimes London streets are named after the rural estates of aristocratic landowners, such as in the case of Wimpole Street . From
1620-516: The early nineteenth century. He built Stormont Castle in 1830 which was described as a "large plain house with very little planting about it". In 1858 the exterior of the castle was redesigned in the Scottish Baronial style by the local architect Thomas Turner. Some ancillary buildings were added at this time including a lean-to glasshouse and stables. A terraced garden and a walled kitchen garden were also created. When Cleland died in 1834
1680-406: The estate went to John Cleland (1836–1893) and then finally to Arthur Charles Stewart Cleland (1865–1924). The origin of the name "Stormont" is unclear. It may be a shortened version of "Storm Mount" (recorded as the name of the estate in 1834), or it may have been taken from the name of a district of Perthshire . The Perthshire name is Gaelic in origin, and is believed to mean "place for crossing
1740-492: The extreme southern end of the quarry and the High Wall Extraction on the eastern and south east boundaries. High Wall Extraction is a series of small mines that extract otherwise wasted stone that sits between the final faces of the quarry and the actual boundary of the site. Stonehills Mine is the first completely new mine on Portland (not a mine as an extension from an existing quarry). Albion Stone Plc began
1800-436: The forces necessary to loosen the stone to the point where it can be easily removed using large wheeled loaders . Splitting stone, using pneumatic drills is arduous work and so wire-saws have been introduced into the quarries, replacing much of the plug and feather cutting. Mining in Portland is done by using a room and pillar method. The mine is advanced by extracting the stone using an abrasive tool chain cutter mounted on
1860-449: The gardens and grounds of a very large property, such as a country house , mansion , palace or castle . It is the modern term for a manor , but lacks a manor's now-abolished jurisdiction. The "estate" formed an economic system where the profits from its produce and rents (of housing or agricultural land) sustained the main household, formerly known as the manor house . Thus, "the estate" may refer to all other cottages and villages in
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1920-403: The impact on the environment and local residents. Jordan's Mine is currently the biggest mine on Portland. Bowers Quarry has been operational since the late 18th century. It has been leased from The Crown Estate since 1979, and in 2002 it became the site of the first Portland stone mine by Albion Stone PLC. Extraction from this site is now completely underground, with the original Bowers Mine in
1980-455: The impact on wildlife and the local community with reduced noise and dust. Portland's freestone has almost certainly been used as a building material since Roman times. The many well crafted Roman sarcophagi (stone coffins and matching lids, hewn from single large blocks of Portland stone) that have been unearthed locally over the years, testify to the skill of their makers. The earliest known building to be constructed using Portland stone
2040-795: The important civic and administrative buildings which survive from 18th and 19th century Dublin , Ireland, known then as "the second city of the Empire", are of Portland stone, including City Hall (1779), the Houses of Parliament (1767), the Custom House (1791), the National Gallery (1864) and the General Post Office (1818). More recent projects include the BBC Broadcasting House in London, which won
2100-411: The island, which also includes Fancy Beach. The quarry has been worked since the late 19th century. Albion Stone leases the southern section from The Crown Estate and purchased the northern part of the site in 2006. The majority of the southern reserves lie under the grounds of the local cricket club. To avoid disturbing the site at surface level, the company has applied and received permission to extract
2160-409: The last 80 years and is one of three privately owned quarries by Portland Stone Firms Ltd, the largest landholder on the island. The quarry is nearing the end of its life and will be regenerated as a holiday caravan park to boost local tourism on the island. Perryfield Quarry is found towards the middle of the island and being actively open cast quarried. There are over 20 years of reserves left which
2220-566: The late 1940s and early 1950s, many of these estates had been demolished and subdivided , in some cases resulting in suburban villages named for the former owners, as in Baxter Estates, New York . An important distinction between the United States and England is that "American country estates, unlike English ones, rarely, if ever, supported the house." American estates have always been about "the pleasures of land ownership and
2280-571: The millions of people killed in this and subsequent conflicts. The RAF Bomber Command Memorial in London's Green Park commemorates the 55,573 crew members of the RAF's Bomber Command who were killed between 1939 and 1945. The gravestones for British personnel killed in the First and Second World Wars were made out of Portland stone. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission use Portland Limestone supplier Albion Stone's Portland Basebed. Portland stone
2340-466: The money for their improvement and maintenance usually comes from fortunes earned in other economic sectors besides agriculture. They are distinguished from ordinary middle-class American houses by sheer size, as well as their landscaping, gardens, outbuildings, and most importantly, recreational structures (e.g., tennis courts and swimming pools). This usage is the predominant connotation of "estate" in contemporary American English (when not preceded by
2400-540: The mountain" (from star monadh ). There is also a Stormont in County Limerick , and a couple of Stormounts in Armagh and Down. The Cleland family moved out in 1893 to live abroad and the estate was let to a tenant. When the tenancy ended, initial efforts to sell the estate failed. In 1921, the newly formed Parliament of Northern Ireland was looking for a site for its Parliament Buildings. Parliament authorised
2460-473: The new St Paul's Cathedral was a great boost for the quarries and established Portland as London's choice of building stone. The island was connected by railway to the rest of the country from 1865. Albion Stone PLC has been quarrying and mining Portland stone since 1984. Portland Stone Firms Ltd have been quarrying Portland stone since 1994. Jordans is part of the Inmosthay Quarry in the centre of
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2520-830: The new WCEC extension in Portland Roach which was short-listed for the Stirling Prize in 2017, Somerset House (1792), the General Post Office (1829), the Bank of England , the Mansion House and the National Gallery . Tower Bridge is partly clad in Portland stone (along with Cornish granite ). Portland stone was used in 1923 to build the supporting pillar of the Grace Gates at Lord's Cricket Ground . Recently, Portland stone has been used in
2580-519: The north side of Massey Avenue, just inside the entrance, was built in 1936 by the Ministry of Finance . It was designed by Sir Arnold Thornley. Another single-storey hipped roof Neo-Georgian style pavilion on Massey Avenue was built to the east side of the Lord Carson Memorial at some point between 1938 and 1959. The architect is not known. Dundonald House was designed in the early 1960s by Belfast-born architect Robert Hanna Gibson. It
2640-457: The opportunity to enjoy active, outdoor pursuits ." Although some American estates included farms, they were always in support of the larger recreational purpose. Today, large houses on lots of at least several acres in size are often referred to as "estates", in a contemporary updating of the word's usage. Most contemporary American estates are not large enough to include significant amounts of self-supporting productive agricultural land, and
2700-469: The process to open this mine in 2015 and reserves are estimated to last for 50 years (2066). Independent Quarry and Admiralty Quarry are both owned by The Crown Estate and have been leased since 1982. These quarries have been worked since the mid-19th century with the final dimension stones coming out of Independent in 2006, although some stocks of Portland stone block still remain. Coombefield Quarry , located near Southwell has been open cast quarried over
2760-604: The public. Facilities include a boardwalk, a fitness trail, an outdoor gym and a barbecue area. There is also a children's park named after former Secretary of State for Northern Ireland , Mo Mowlam , MP. Stormont Estate is now home to the Stormont Parkrun , a free, weekly, 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) timed run. The regulations governing the use of the Stormont Estate are displayed at its entrance. These were initially enacted on 31 October 1933, in an order by
2820-476: The quarries' environmental performance and removed the potential for any possible damage to the stone being quarried through shock. Full account of the local jointing pattern is made when deciding the position and orientation of cuts. Once the quarry faces have been cut, the stone is gently displaced hydraulically. This is done using "hydro-bags", which are thin, flat, steel bags or envelopes that when inflated with water under moderate pressure, are capable of producing
2880-500: The refurbishment of the British Museum 's central court, the planned Portland stone was controversially substituted with Anstrude Roche Claire stone from France, another similar (but cheaper) oolitic limestone. The term, "Portland cement", was coined by Joseph Aspdin who in 1824 patented a hydraulic binder created by burning a mixture of limestone and clay , resembling the previously existing Roman cement and presenting
2940-485: The rock from its natural bed, hopefully undamaged. Stone was cut using plugs and feathers , where a series of short, small diameter (typically 30 mm) holes are drilled in a line where a cut is to be made. One plug and two feathers were inserted into each hole and each plug is hit in turn with a sledgehammer until the stone yields to the extreme tensile stresses produced. Most stone is many times weaker in tension than in compression, plugs and feathers utilise this fact. It
3000-528: The same ownership as the mansion itself, covering more than one former manor. Examples of such great estates are Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire , England, and Blenheim Palace , in Oxfordshire , England, built to replace the former manor house of Woodstock. Before the 1870s, these estates often encompassed several thousand acres, generally consisting of several farms let to tenants ; the great house
3060-502: The sea allowed the quarried stone blocks to be moved over relatively large distances by barge. Portland stone was used to build the Palace of Westminster in 1347, the Tower of London in 1349 and the first stone London Bridge in 1350. Exeter Cathedral and Christchurch Priory , also constructed during the 14th Century, are built of Portland stone. Its superb characteristics have ensured
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#17327723528803120-488: The sea floor. Small particles of sand or organic detritus, such as shell fragments, formed a nucleus, which became coated with layers of calcite as they were rolled around in the muddy micrite. Portland stone measures 3.5 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness . The calcite gradually accumulated (by accretion) around the fragments of shell in concentric layers, forming small balls (of less than 0.5 mm diameter). This process
3180-482: The southern tip of the island has permission to be worked by Portland Stone Firms and will provide in excess of 30 years of reserves. Permission has been granted for this to be open cast quarried. Once quarries have been worked they are then restored. The Portland Sculpture and Quarry Trust was formed in 1983 and is dedicated to preserving a knowledge and understanding of stone and the landscape from which it comes. The main non-working quarry remains Tout Quarry in which
3240-496: The stone is sufficiently well cemented to allow it to resist weathering, but not so well cemented that it cannot be readily worked (cut and carved) by masons. This is one of the reasons why Portland stone is so favoured as a monumental and architectural stone. Geoff Townson conducted three years doctoral research on the Portlandian, being the first to describe the patch-reef facies and Dorset-wide sedimentation details. Ian West of
3300-494: The stone using mining rather than quarrying techniques. The reserves to the north will be quarried using the diamond bladed cutting machines, hydro bags and wire saws to shape the blocks. This process avoids the use of dusty and noisy blasting as the primary extraction method, thereby protecting the surrounding environment, which has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Albion Stone PLC now extract all their stone through mining which dramatically reduces
3360-490: The trust is based, where a workshop is held every year. Tout Quarry has been donated to the Portland Sculpture and Quarry Trust by Portland Stone Firms Limited. Traditionally small diameter holes (35 mm) were drilled horizontally under each rock and charged with a small quantity of gunpowder , chosen because of its relative non-shattering properties. When fired the gunpowder produced a "heave" which dislodged
3420-502: The word "real" ), which is why "industrial estate" sounds like an oxymoron to Americans, as few wealthy persons would deliberately choose to live next to factories. Traditional American estates include: Portland limestone Vale of Wardour : Tisbury Member, Wockley Member, Chilmark Member Portland stone is a limestone geological formation (formally named the Portland Stone Formation ) dating to
3480-472: Was in practice strictly restricted until the 19th century when legal changes to game hunting meant the nobility, gentry and other wealthy families could purchase land for the purposes of hunting. At the administrative centre of these sporting estates is usually a sporting lodge . These are also often known as shooting or hunting estates. In modern British English , the term "estate" has been generalised to any large parcel of land under single ownership, such as
3540-473: Was supplied with food from its own home farm (for meat and dairy) and a kitchen garden (for fruit and vegetables). A dower house may have been present on the estate to allow the widow of the former owner her own accommodation and household when moved out the primary house on the estate. The agricultural depression from the 1870s onwards and the decline of servants meant that the large rural estates declined in social and economic significance, and many of
3600-609: Was used for the Armed Forces Memorial in Staffordshire , England. Designed by Liam O'Connor Architects and Planning Consultants, it was completed in 2007 at a cost of over £6 million and bears the names of over 16,000 service personnel of the British Armed Forces killed since the Second World War. Portland stone is recognised to be of a high quality, but is somewhat expensive. In the case of
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