BRINGING BLUE HOUSE BACK TO LIFE B
lue House has to be one of the most easily recognisable houses in Newcastle; sat in a prominent position on the corner of Grandstand Road and The Great North Road on a roundabout that has borne its name for as long as anyone can remember.
There is surprisingly little information available about the history of this iconic building. The house, which is not listed, is such a well-known landmark in the City, it has its own entry in the A-Z. Originally there were four Blue Houses, this one on the roundabout on the junction of
Grandstand Road, Moor Bank Lodge on Claremont Road (home of the Town Moor Superintendent and Freemen Headquarters). West House on Barrack Road and finally Blue House on Ponteland Road which was sadly demolished as it was isolated and subject to vandalism. A low bank marks the course of the wall around the property which is visible as a rectangular platform. Not much is known about the original Blue House on The Great North Road, but it was rebuilt by the Wardens and Freemen of Newcastle in 1896 – we know that because there’s a plaque on the wall that says so! As far as we know, the house was named Blue House because of the blue slates on the roof, which have long since been replaced. It is now more commonly known as Blue House because the paintwork has been blue for at least the last 100 years.
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Freemen Magazine
