Belfast church seeks £1m to restore CS Lewis family home as visitor hub

St Mark’s Church in east Belfast is seeking £1m to begin restoring the former home of CS Lewis’s grandfather, with plans for an exhibition, library, community café and writer’s retreat. The church hopes to open the Old Rectory on Holywood Road in November 2028, marking the 130th anniversary of the author’s birth, The Irish News reports.

The restoration forms part of a £2.5m project for the Grade B2-listed building, which has stood empty for eight years. Its condition has deteriorated, with dry rot affecting the former rector’s office.

Exhibition and spaces for writers

Two ground-floor rooms, including that office, would house a permanent exhibition exploring Lewis’s life and writing. Lewis Legacy project secretary Lynn Wilson said the aim was to explain his family’s Belfast connections and the beginnings of his Christian faith.

A café at the back of the house would give the community access to the building and garden. Scholars and writers would be invited to stay in a self-contained flat, while rooms would be available to book for seminars.

The proposed first-floor library, beside the seminar rooms, would be named after Lewis’s mother, Flora Hamilton. Wilson said Flora was among the first women to gain a degree from Queen’s and taught Lewis and his brother at home before her death.

A family home with lasting connections

The Rev Thomas Hamilton built the nine-bedroom rectory in the late 1880s. His daughter Flora lived there from her late teens into her early 30s, and Lewis regularly visited his grandfather as a child.

The house remained the rector’s residence until the 1970s, then saw intermittent use as offices and accommodation for Christian organisations. Lewis was baptised at St Mark’s and later gave the church a stained-glass window commemorating his parents.

Wilson said the first £1m would pay for work to preserve and restore the building. Donations can be made through St Mark’s website.

Source: The Irish News