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The building
In 1879, William Dixon, the owner of Belleisle Estate in Ayr, decided to enhance the amenities of his mansion house by having a conservatory built in his extensive gardens. Dixon was a wealthy industrialist, owning massive ironworks , known as "Dixon's Blazes" in Govanhill. His conservatory in Belleisle was constructed by a specialist company, James Boyd and Sons of Paisley. It was a stylish glasshouse with a curvilinear roof, metal and wooden frames and a base wall of red sandstone. The present conservatory still sits on the same wall and is supported by the same eight pillars of cast iron while the central cross aisle of decorative tile flooring also dates back to 1879.
George Coats
One year after the completion of the building, however, William Dixon died and the whole Belleisle estate was sold to George Coats of the thread-making family in Paisley. Coats embellished the entire property, by extending the mansion house and filling it with works of art. His collection of fine objects included a colourful terracotta statue for the conservatory. The statue is still a decorative feature of the building. By the time George Coats, then Lord Glentanar, had died, Belleisle, including the conservatory had been somewhat neglected. The estate was eventually bought in 1925 by Ayr Town Council, partly through the good offices of the then Provost James Gould.
Council's park
In the years following the purchase, the Council drew up plans to develop Belleisle as a public park with a golf course, pathways, children's playing areas and a hotel. But what were they to do with the conservatory? The councillors took the momentous and far-sighted decision to repair and restore it as a public attraction with displays of seasonal, exotic and perennial plants and flowers all year round. The colourful shows were carefully maintained by teams of gardeners employed in the park by Ayr Town Council. After it was opened to the public in the thirties, generations of local families and visitors from many parts of the country visited Belleisle and its beautiful conservatory.
In the years following the purchase, the Council drew up plans to develop Belleisle as a public park with a golf course, pathways, children's playing areas and a hotel. But what were they to do with the conservatory? The councillors took the momentous and far-sighted decision to repair and restore it as a public attraction with displays of seasonal, exotic and perennial plants and flowers all year round. The colourful shows were carefully maintained by teams of gardeners employed in the park by Ayr Town Council. After it was opened to the public in the thirties, generations of local families and visitors from many parts of the country visited Belleisle and its beautiful conservatory.
The re-build
By the 1950s, however, the 75 year-old building was past its best and the Ayr council took the decision to have it reconstructed but in the same position as the original and using some of the same structural and design features. The new structure, built by Messrs Mackenzie and Moncur of Edinburgh, was as we see it today: straight, sloping roof, mainly wooden framework but with the same dimensions, 70 feet long x 34 feet wide x 25 feet tall at the point of its roof.
New beginning
Thus began a new era of popularity of the conservatory for still more generations of visitors. The building, as a feature of Belleisle Park, was valued and looked after by successive councils in their various, changing names: Ayr Town, Kyle and Carrick District and now South Ayrshire. Over the decades of the sixties, seventies and eighties the role of Director of Parks and Gardens was crucial for the care and maintenance of the conservatory. Two particular holders of that post, the late Robert Wakefield and his successor the late David Roy, deserve special mention for the ways in which the glasshouse flourished.
Decline
During the nineties, however, Belleisle Conservatory gradually went into decline. The council had difficulty in meeting the costs of maintaining it and vandalism was increasing. In 2005 the building was closed and boarded up. The plants inside were left to wither or to grow wild. Branches were seen protruding though broken glass in the roof. This was the lowest point in the conservatory's story.
BCL and restoration
On a Spring evening in 2010, a group of concerned and committed local people met in the Abbotsford Hotel in Ayr and resolved to begin the long process of restoring the conservatory. They set up a local enterprise company to be called Belleisle Conservatory Limited (BCL). This was to be a charity consisting entirely of volunteers and managed by a committee. South Ayrshire Council (SAC) granted the committee a lease of the conservatory and the surrounding lawns A professional survey of the building concluded that the cost of restoration would be £583,000, this to include strengthened re-glazing, repairing and replacing timber, re-installing electricity and restoring heating. SAC agreed to include the charity in a joint bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund for a major grant covering all of Belleisle Park with a specific fund for the conservatory. To everyone's joy, the bid was successful, with £400,000 being allocated to BCL. The fundraising that followed aiming at £190,000 included collection cans, sponsorships, dinners and numerous application for grants from individual charities. To cut a long story short, the required money was raised, a contractor, Messrs Richardson and Starling, was appointed, work began in 2014 and was completed by 2016.
By the 1950s, however, the 75 year-old building was past its best and the Ayr council took the decision to have it reconstructed but in the same position as the original and using some of the same structural and design features. The new structure, built by Messrs Mackenzie and Moncur of Edinburgh, was as we see it today: straight, sloping roof, mainly wooden framework but with the same dimensions, 70 feet long x 34 feet wide x 25 feet tall at the point of its roof.
New beginning
Thus began a new era of popularity of the conservatory for still more generations of visitors. The building, as a feature of Belleisle Park, was valued and looked after by successive councils in their various, changing names: Ayr Town, Kyle and Carrick District and now South Ayrshire. Over the decades of the sixties, seventies and eighties the role of Director of Parks and Gardens was crucial for the care and maintenance of the conservatory. Two particular holders of that post, the late Robert Wakefield and his successor the late David Roy, deserve special mention for the ways in which the glasshouse flourished.
Decline
During the nineties, however, Belleisle Conservatory gradually went into decline. The council had difficulty in meeting the costs of maintaining it and vandalism was increasing. In 2005 the building was closed and boarded up. The plants inside were left to wither or to grow wild. Branches were seen protruding though broken glass in the roof. This was the lowest point in the conservatory's story.
BCL and restoration
On a Spring evening in 2010, a group of concerned and committed local people met in the Abbotsford Hotel in Ayr and resolved to begin the long process of restoring the conservatory. They set up a local enterprise company to be called Belleisle Conservatory Limited (BCL). This was to be a charity consisting entirely of volunteers and managed by a committee. South Ayrshire Council (SAC) granted the committee a lease of the conservatory and the surrounding lawns A professional survey of the building concluded that the cost of restoration would be £583,000, this to include strengthened re-glazing, repairing and replacing timber, re-installing electricity and restoring heating. SAC agreed to include the charity in a joint bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund for a major grant covering all of Belleisle Park with a specific fund for the conservatory. To everyone's joy, the bid was successful, with £400,000 being allocated to BCL. The fundraising that followed aiming at £190,000 included collection cans, sponsorships, dinners and numerous application for grants from individual charities. To cut a long story short, the required money was raised, a contractor, Messrs Richardson and Starling, was appointed, work began in 2014 and was completed by 2016.
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Open again
So this was when the volunteers could set up the conservatory as intended. Thea Petticrew was the committee member who ordered the plants and supervised the arranging of displays. The team went about re-creating Belleisle Conservatory as a beautiful and welcoming heritage centre to exhibit plants from across the world. The re-opening ceremony took place at 3.00pm on Saturday 23July 2016.
A company of volunteers
The tasks of planning, fund-raising and visualising the restoration of the conservatory had all been performed by volunteers in BCL and so it has continued. The management committee now have to run the building as a business, accountable to Companies House and to the Office of Scottish Charities Regulator (OSCR). Fund-raising is an essential part of securing monies to allow the conservatory to continue to stay open.
The charity needs at least £50,000 per year to maintain the building at the high standard expected by its visitors The committee recruited teams of volunteers to work at caring for the plants and the environs of the building, overseen by a part time horticultural manager, and volunteers to meet and greet visitors each day or to support events. These events included concerts, social soirées, business meetings, Christmas and seasonal jollifications, bee-keeping attractions and, very importantly, weddings and family ceremonies. The most recent and ambitious project is an educational and environmental multi-media resource display which is involving local school children and teachers. It is based on the theme of climate change and is a follow-up to the COP26 conference in Glasgow. These events and enterprises all involve dozens, even hundreds of folk in the community. Furthermore, according to BCL's headcount there are about 12,000 visitors to the conservatory each year.
So this was when the volunteers could set up the conservatory as intended. Thea Petticrew was the committee member who ordered the plants and supervised the arranging of displays. The team went about re-creating Belleisle Conservatory as a beautiful and welcoming heritage centre to exhibit plants from across the world. The re-opening ceremony took place at 3.00pm on Saturday 23July 2016.
A company of volunteers
The tasks of planning, fund-raising and visualising the restoration of the conservatory had all been performed by volunteers in BCL and so it has continued. The management committee now have to run the building as a business, accountable to Companies House and to the Office of Scottish Charities Regulator (OSCR). Fund-raising is an essential part of securing monies to allow the conservatory to continue to stay open.
The charity needs at least £50,000 per year to maintain the building at the high standard expected by its visitors The committee recruited teams of volunteers to work at caring for the plants and the environs of the building, overseen by a part time horticultural manager, and volunteers to meet and greet visitors each day or to support events. These events included concerts, social soirées, business meetings, Christmas and seasonal jollifications, bee-keeping attractions and, very importantly, weddings and family ceremonies. The most recent and ambitious project is an educational and environmental multi-media resource display which is involving local school children and teachers. It is based on the theme of climate change and is a follow-up to the COP26 conference in Glasgow. These events and enterprises all involve dozens, even hundreds of folk in the community. Furthermore, according to BCL's headcount there are about 12,000 visitors to the conservatory each year.
