Admiralty House
From the book "Pembroke" part of the Bermuda's Architectural History Series published by the Bermuda National Trust in 2017:
The Admiralty House Ballroom, 8 Admiralty Lane, is all that is left of Admiralty House in 2015. The demise of the main house began in 1973, when the Minister of Works and Engineering John Patton submitted a report on the condition of Admiralty House. He, with the Minister of Health and the Minister of Organization, had visited the property and come to the opinion that any attempt to rehabilitate it would be fruitless. At that time it was the home of the Bermuda Regiment, which was relocating to its present headquarters at Warwick Camp. This caused the government to have security concerns, and on this point came agreement from Government House. "The Acting Governor has advised," declared the Minister, "that His Excellency the Governor has drawn attention to the fact that when the Regiment finally withdraws from the building it could be a prime target for vandalism and will also be a fire hazard."
Thus came the death sentence for the venerable former residence of the North American and West Indies Station commanders, once a seat of British naval power in the region but by then decaying in the same way as other naval buildings at Ireland Island. There were attempts at reprieve. Charles McIvor and environmentalist Stuart Hayward sent a petition to the government in an attempt to preserve the ballroom. That was granted; but the remaining buildings suffered controlled burning on January 24, 1974, sending columns of smoke nto the clear winter's morning. In 1975 the grounds became a public park.
The history of the site as a Royal Naval locale is roughly coterminous with that of the Royal Naval Dockyard and reflects a century of security concerns that followed the establishment of the United States of America. However the history of the property stretched back to the middle of the 17th century.
"Pembroke Tribe a parcel of Common ground lying at Abbots bay cont[aining] 15 acres lying between ye lands of Mrs. Trimingham afforesaid to ye eastwards and Mr. Henry Moore to ye westward wch parcel of common land is appertaining to 30 shares in this tribe." So went the description given by Richard Norwood in his second survey of the island in 1662/63. At that time Bermuda still had two decades remaining of the Somers Islands Company management. Two half-acre lots, later directly pertaining to the future Admiralty House, were then owned by Hannah Dunscombe. With her ownership began more then 100 years of possession of land in the area by members of the Dunscombe/Dunscomb family. At the same time Samuel Dunscomb was leasing Mrs. Trimingham's share directly to the east. Dunscomb holding of the common land gradually increased and it appears from shipwright Edward Dunscomb's 1733 will that, by then, he had seven acres. When his grandson, John Dunscomb (c1777-1847), advertised it for sale in 1815 he had nine acres, which included much of the present Admiralty House Park and curved round Abbot's (now Clarence) Cove.
Edward Dunscomb had sons William and Edward, both mariners, who inherited the St. John's Hill property (as the house at Abbot's Covecame to be called). So is seen a familiar trend of seashore properties owned by mariners. Abbot's Cove, earlier referred to as Bitefinger Bay, was a sheltered anchorage with access to the sea. The brothers also bought Olive Hill and property at Pitts Bay where they had a store. William died childless in 1790 so Edward inherited his brother's share and left it to his son John.
Bermuda newspapers provide a good record of the affairs of John Dunscomb. From the age of about 18 (in 1795) he was advertising goods for sale and seems to have acquired ships soon afterwards. However, his affairs were based on Pitts Bay and only one advertisement, for the sale of pigs, suggests that he was trading out of St. John's Hill. He moved to Newfoundland in 1809, and about this time formed his own company, John Dunscomb & Co. This company was associated with several others. The parent company was Richard Wood & Co. of Bermuda. The others were Wood, Dill & Co. of Grenada and Wood Leaycraft, Seon & Co. of Trinidad. Dunscomb seldom returned to Bermuda but became a prominent merchant in Newfoundland. After the link to Richard Wood & Co. ended, he formed a closer association with Joseph Dill who managed the Caribbean operations, which probably included trading cod, salt raking from the valuable Bermuda semi-colony of Turks Island, and the sale of these and other North American products to various Caribbean ports. One can speculate that one of the clients was the new Republiuc of Haiti. Dunscomb did well in Newfoundland and became a member of the Governor's Council. He died in Liverpool, England in 1847 where he had gone for an eye operation. After his death, however, his estate and several associates were sued in the Bermuda courts and his remaining property, including the site of Widdrington on Pitts Bay (see Chapter 13), was sold by the Provost Marshal.
During the late 18th century the activity of the Royal Navy had mostly taken place in the eastern end of the island and the admirals, when ashore, had tended to live in St. George's. Eventually, however, after years of debate, officials decided to build a Naval Dockyard on Ireland Island, and in 1809 the British government made the first land purchase. This was the beginning of an expanded imperial presence in Bermuda and the Dockyard grew rapidly until the 1850's. Ineitably this meant that the admirals also moved west. The pull was even stronger when the capital moved from St. George's to Hamilton in 1815.
In 1812, the then Vice-Admiral (later Admiral) Sir John Borlase Warren signed a long lease for Mount Wyndham in Hamilton Parish. However before that, in 1810, John Dunscomb had rented his St. John's property to the Navy, which used it for a hospital. Dunscomb then, in 1815, advertised it for sale, and in March 1816 the house and nine acres were sold to the Bermuda Government. The house was repaired and later that year given to the British Crown "to and for the use and residence of the Naval Commander-in-Chief for the time being upon this Station." Naval presence was clear, not only in the building but in the name. The year 1830 was when the Duke of Clarence ascended to the throne of Great Britain as King William IV. While in the Royal Navy he had served in the West Indies, although he never visited Bermuda, and in recognition of his accession St. John's Hill was renamed Clarence Hill, Abbot's Cove became Clarence Cove, and Admiralty House, Clarence House, although that name fell into disuse.
Over time, additions were made to the house and land. Eventually the property consisted of over 20 acres which included land to the south of Spanish Point Road which became the Admiralty House gardens, now Tulo Valley plant nursery. The house did not rival the flamboyance of Commissioner's House, the home of the Admiral's subordinate, the Commissioner of the Royal Naval Dockyard, and it was often in need of repair. The house was altered and added to so many times that by the end it was not possible to be sure of the shape of the original Dunscomb house. In the 1840's Vice-Admiral Thomas Cochrane, the Earl of Dundonald, used convict labor to excavate tunnels through the cliffs below the house for transporting stores and for cool storage.
The ballroom, which was the only part of the building to be saved when the house was demolished, was the last addition. It was built in 1897 and was then connected to the main house by a covered corridor. Essentially it was one large room, as its purpose would imply. The roof was gambral type and the wide verandah had exceptionally find "gingerbread" brackets.
After the rest of Admiralty House was demolished the ballroom was successfully used by a community club for a time but maintenance was neglected and the club had to move elsewhere. By 2015 the building was in a state of disrepair with extensive damage to the main and porch roofs. All the windows had been broken and there was no funding for renovations even though the building was designated Grade 2 on the Bermuda Government's "Building of Special Architectural or Historic Interest" list.
The building's Second World War hstory is memorable. The Bermudian magazine in 1946 reported that at the start of the war it was converted into a Cyber Office. "It was divided into two halves by a 10-foot high partition, and one side furnished as Staff-room while the other was equipped as a Cyber Office. This excellent arrangement meant that the Cyber Officers had ready access to the Staff Office in case they needed advice, and cut down on the necessity for telephoning. Both offices were of course, operating 24 hours a day." Later in the war a wooden building was erected at the side of Clerk's Cottage for the Cyber Office. The article continued that operations conducred in a converted ballroom and a wooden hut played an important part in "bringing the Battle of the Atlantic" to a successful conclusion against an enemy who for years had been equipping himself to destroy shipping lanes in this part of the Western Hemisphere."
The Dunscomb family owned property in this area (Spanish Point) from 1672 according to researcher Clara Halllett in her book "Bermuda Civil Records" Vol. III, p. 146. The specific Admiralty House property had been owned by the Dunscomb family since at least 1727, when as assessment record on Edward Dunscomb (died 1733) is on record. The porterty passed from this Edward to his sons Edwad and William via Edward's 1733 will. When the second Edward died in 1790 he willed his share to his son John, who assumed full ownership once his uncle William died childless ca. 1810. Iwas purposely burned on Jan. 24, 1974 on the order of the then Minister of Public Works. The ballroom, added in 1897, was spared. In 1975 the site became a public park.
From "Bermuda's Architectural Heritage : Pembroke" by Clarence Maxwell, Bermuda National Trust, 2017:
...Vice-Admiral Sir George Cockburn had lived at the site which ultimately became Admiralty House. Sir George was the famous admiral connected with the War of 1812. In August 1814 he had sailed out of the Great Sound with the flotilla on a retalitory campaign to Maryland and Virginia which resulted in the burning of Washington, DC and the White House.
In 1812, the then Vice-Admral (later Admiral) Sir John Borlase Warren signed a long lease for Mount Wyndham in Hamilton Parish. However before that, in 1810, John Dunscomb had rented his St. John's property to the Navy, which used it for a hospital. Dunscomb then advertised it for sale and, after interim owners, in March 1816 the house and nine acres were sold to the Bernmuda Government. The house was repaired and later that year given to the British Crown "to and for the use and residence of the Naval Commander-in-Chief for the time being, upon this Station."
The Dunscomb family of Pembroke began to purchase common land before 1672 when Thomas Dunscomb had two acres of the western, Spanish Point, common land which had been assigned for the two Point Shares and the two Mill Shares. However, by 1815 his descendant John Dunscomb owned a house and nine acres, not there but at the eastern common at Bitefinger Bay, that was then sold as a residence for the Admiral. One of the acres that Dunscomb then held would have come to him through descent, having been assigned in 1662 to Hannah Dunscomb for the tract of two shares that she held in the eastern part of Pembroke.
The last paragraph above establishes that at least one acre of the land John Dunscomb owned and sold to the government in 1816 had been owned by the Dunscomb family since 1662.
Source Notes:
Admiralty House Ballroom, 8 Admiralty Lane
The ballroom was listed Grade 2 under the Bermuda Government's 'Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest', Development and Planning Act 1974 and is still listed in 2015.
Owner (relationship) Dates owned Sources
Edward Dunscomb bef 1727-1733 1727Ass
Hannah Dunscomb (wd/o Edward Dunscomb) 1733-? Life interest, W6:343 1733/1733
William & Edward Dunscomb (ss/o Edward & Hannah Dunscomb) ?-1790 Death of Edward W10:372 1790/1790, 1789Ass
William Dunscomb & John Dunscomb (s/o Edward Dunscomb) 1790-1808 Death of William Dunscomb
John Dunscomb (s/o Edward Dunscomb) 1790-1814 W10:372
Henry Tucker (by purchase) 1814-13 Mar 1816 D8:368, D8:369, D8:382
Joseph Edward Albouy Godfrey (by Provost Marshal sale) 13-14 Mar 1816 D8:373
Henry Gilbert Hunt, John Noble Harvey, Richard Darrell (by purchase) 14 Mar-? 1816 D8:389, D8:390, Act of Assembly 54
Bermuda Government (by purchase) 1816- D8:389, D8:390, Act of Assembly 54
Significant events Dates Sources
John Dunscomb advertised to let St John's Hill 1809 RG 3 Apr 1809
St John's Hill, rented by Admiral Sir J B Warren 1810 £60 p.a. BM Nov 1956:34
Became a Naval Hospital 1812-1814 BHQ 1951 Vol 8, No 1 p14
St John's Hill advertised for sale 1815 RG 23 Dec 1815 For Sale, house & 10 acres
About 9 acres purchased by Bermuda Government & given to
Naval Commander-in-Chief 1816 Act of Assembly 54 of 1816
Additional 8½ acres purchased from Joseph H Wood 1816 Act of Assembly 54 of 1816
Improvements & wine cellars 1821 Stranack, The Andrew and the Onions, 2nd ed, p62
St John's Hill renamed Clarence Hill 1822 Stranack, p62
Land leased from Mrs Whitney 1835 Act of Assembly 93
Caves & galleries tunneled 1848 Stranack, p62
Clerk's Cottage purchased from Charles Rivers added to property 1859 D38:88, house & 2 acres 1 rood 12 p, £150
Ballroom built 1897 BM July 1946 p9
Ballroom verandah added 1899 BM July 1946 p9
Ballroom converted to staff & cipher office 1939 BM August 1946 p13
Victory Ball, New Year's Eve 1945 BM August 1946 p13
House returned to Bermuda Government 1956 Oct Stranack, p62
Police caretakers 1957-1962 Stranack, p63
Bermuda Regiment in occupation 1962-1973 Stranack, p63
Recommended demolition of house 1973 Cabinet memo 299/1973
Admiralty House demolished, ballroom preserved 1974 Stranack, p63, Cabinet memo 464/1973
Area declared a public park 1976 Stranack, p63, Cabinet memo 265/1976, RG 19 Oct 1976
Pembroke Community Centre leased ballroom from Government bef 1979 Oral
Ballroom allocated to boxing fraternity 2005 RG 1 May 2007
Ballroom boarded up 2010 Site visit
Proposals to repair but no action has been taken by 2015 2014 Parks Department
Early history of the land was established from Norwood's 1662/63 survey and from plans MP/04/108/26 and 29 in the Bermuda Archives. The Dunscomb family owned property in this area from 1672 according to Hallett, Bermuda Civil Records (Vol III, p146). They owned this property from 1727 when it was eventually inherited by John Dunscomb who sold it to the Bermuda Government 'for the use and residence of the Naval Commander in Chief' in 1816.
The Andrew and the Onions by Ian Stranack was consulted. Articles in The Bermudian magazines of September 1932, July and August 1946, November 1956 were useful. Researchers: Barbara Antonition, Fay Elliott and Thomas V James
Research
COLONIAL RECORDS VOL 1
1653 - Mr Thomas DUNSCOMBE Snr.
1653 - Thomas DUNSCOMBE Jnr.
COLONIAL RECORDS VOL 2
Thomas DUNSCOMBE Jnr. Had a bastard son.
NORWOOD. 8. 1663. Mrs Hannah DUNSCOMBE formerly Mr .Thomas JUDWIN.
2 shares - 24a. S - Crow Lane. N- Sea.
NORWOOD 31. Common Land. Mrs. H. Dunscombe. 2 shares.
BERMUDA COMPANY RECORDS. Conveyance Pm.
1643. William BARKLEY sale of 4 half acres of COMMON LAND TO Solomon MIDDLETON.
Mr Barkley 4 ½ acres from Howell MORRICE
Also half acre being Common land belonging to Mr Barkley held by lease from Mr EDWARDS.
1658/59 Conveyance Pm.
"all those three shares of land with the houses .. . being in Pm … now in the possession of Mrs. Marie Barkeley, wife to Mr. William Barkeley Snr…'
John STOWE 'free and release the aforesaid Mr BARKELEY from the acre and half of Common land belonging to the abovesaid house and land being formerly sold to William' (Barkeley)
1672 May 29
'...Mr. Perinchief did lay out two acres of land which he said was for the 4 shares that Capt John Stowe now lives upon, the which two acres Mr. Thomas Dunscomb's house now stands on.'
W6:343. 1733/1733. Edward DUNSCOMB. Shipwright, Pm.
Wife Hannah. Ch: William, Edward, Anna, Isabella, Susanna, Margaret, Elizabeth ARGENT.
Sons William & Edward 'all that parcel of land that I am lawfully possessed being about 7 acres. To wife Hannah until death and then to the survivor of the sons.
EBR:163. Edward DUNSCOMB Pm married Christiana Godfrey Pm. June 14 1768.
W10:372 1790/1790. Edward DUNSCOMB. Mariner, Pm.
Wife Christiana, ch: John, Josiah, William, Sarah, Martha, Ann LOVE. Bro. William.
Son John DUNSCOMB 'my late dwelling house at Spanish Point with the land and appurtenances bordering on the land of Mr. Peter Godfrey also 1 lot of land I lately purchased from Thomas Joel bordering & bounding on the land of David
Whitney? '
W15:397. 1829/35. Christiana DUNSCOMB. Wd/o Edward Dunscomb.
Ch: John (has ch.)
BI:364. John DUNSCOMB Age 70 Native of Bermuda, but for many years a merchant in Newfoundland died Nov. 29th 1847 in Liverpool England where he had gone for an eye operation. He was a Lieut. Colonel & had been Aide de Camp to the first Governor of Newfoundland and also a Member of Council. He was a co-partner with Joseph J Dill of Pembroke Hall, merchant. . . Director of the West Indies branch of the firm , while Mr. Dunscomb was Director of the Newfoundland branch.
Sail to Steam.
P.250. 1808. Agency opened in Newfoundland. 2 Dunscombe vessels taken over & 'their part owner John Dunscombe as a partner. He took the office at St. John's.'
p.445. 1826 - 'John DUNSCOMBE the councilor whose d had married the able Colonial Sec. James CROWDY.'
Biog of Col Town. p97. 1813. Richard Wood & CO - partner John DUNSCOMB.
1727Ass. Edward DUNSCOMB - 6a.
1789 Ass Capt Edw. and Wm DUNSCOMBE 1 lot £3
1789 Ass Capt William DUNSCOMB 1 lot £10
1789 Ass Capn Edwd. DUNSCOMB 4 a
NOT FOUND.
Date of Hannah Dunscomb's death or her son William.
William Dunscomb 1814. Ad4:217. NOT FOUND.
Letter to ML from relative of John Dunscomb spelling DUNSCOMBE
Pem Misc. 1795 John Dunscomb advertising rum for sale in Pitts Bay.
1797. John Dunscomb opened a store.
RG18090304 lease Pem House Dunscomb John at St John's Hill.
John Dunscomb 'became a prominent citizen of Newfoundland and eventually lieutenant governor of that colony. Thus it came about that when, during his administration, the foundation was laid of Newfoundland's capital city, the Governor named it St John's after his old Bermuda home.' Bda Journey. William Zuill.p.74 WRONG
Mount Wyndham, Bailey's Bay was rented by the British Admiralty until 1816 when Admiralty House was transferred to St John's, later Clarence Hill, but its first tenant should have been Rear Admiral Sir David Milne but he stayed at Mount Wyndham, leaving his Flag Captain at St John's Hill. BHQ VolXX No3 1963.
Journal of the Proceedings of the House of Assembly of Bermuda.
May 10 1816.
'commonly called St John's Hill' . . . 'authorized to purchase' . . .'additions and improvements made' . . 'not exceeding the sum of 3000 pounds.'
June 27 1816
'to examine and purchase (if approved of) . . 'St John's Hill' . . 'To pay for the situation called St John's Hill sixteen hundred pounds' . . .'For a piece of land near it, of about 8 ½ acres 340 pounds; being the prices which the former Proprietors paid for the said premises, and also to make good to the Proprietors, the sum of 666 pounds 13 shillings 4 pence being amount of their Contract with James Bibby, Isaac Gale and Abraham Beek for certain repairs, alterations and additions to the House at St John's Hill when that work shall be completed.'
Chronological Table of Bermuda Acts from 1690-1902
Wildy and Sons. Lincoln Inn Archway, London. Law Publishers. 1903.
1816. 4. An Act authorizing the purchase of a certain place or situation commonly called St John's Hill and also certain Lands contiguous thereto.
1835 12. An Act in addition to the Act etc (of 1816) authorizing the purchase of a certain place or situation commonly called St John's Hill (etc)
1836 9. An Act for vesting in the Crown an additional lot of land for the use of the Naval Commander in Chief on the Station.
Bermuda 1811-1819 LAWS:1-4 (Printed Act)
ACT PASSED THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY 16TH DAY OF JULY 1816.
Concurred to by the Legislative Council 19 July 1816
Assented to 8th August 1816.
'Authorizing the purchase of a certain place or situation, commonly called St John's Hill; and also certain lands contiguous thereto; and for the vesting the same in the Crown, to and for the use and residence of the Naval Commander in Chief for the time being, upon this Station.'
St John's Hill and about 9 acres was purchased from Henry Gilbert Hunt, John Noble Harvey and Richard Darrell for 1600 pounds, current money also 8 acres & 2 roods from Joseph H. Woods for 340 pounds. Also a further 666 pounds, 13 shillings 4 pence 'for certain repairs, alterations and additions already made and now making to the Mansion House at St John's Hill…'
DEEDS, MORTGAGES, ETC.
D8:368, 369, May 25, 26th 1814
St Johns Hill, 8 or 10 acres. 1,850 pounds
John Dunscomb, merchant & wife Elizabeth to Hon Henry Tucker, merchant.
D8:373, 382, 12, 13 Mar 1816.
Provost Marshal General, Robert Kennedy to Joseph Edward Albouy Godfrey. (Attorney for John Dunscomb, then & ever since absent from Bermuda)
Release of above property by Henry Tucker to JEAG.
M3:173. 25/26 May 1814.
John Dunscomb to Henry Tucker
St Johns Hill & 8-10 acres. 1850 pounds.
M3:174 26/27 May 1814.
Henry Tucker to John Dunscomb. The above. 975 pounds.
RG 23 Dec. 1815. St Johns Hill & about 10 acres for sale. 'one of the most eligible situations in the land.'
J.E.A.Godfrey. (Attorney for John Dunscomb.)
D8:389 14 Mar 1816.
Not enough assets to pay, so mortgage or indenture of release deed as in D8:368 put up for auction & JEAG was highest bidder at 140 pounds + agreement to pay 1,021 pounds.15s.3p of debt etc.
D8:389 15 Mar 1816.
Joseph E.A. Godfrey (Attorney for John Dunscomb) sold to Henry Gilbert Hunt, John Noble Harvey and Richard Darrell (Trustees for St John's Hill). 8-10 acres & dwelling house, St John's Hill 1,600 pounds .
Stranack:60, 62. St John's Hill purchased in 1816 and area renamed Clarence Hill.
1821 Admiral Fahie added some wine cellars to 'preserve his health and that of his suite.'
Lord Dundonald had caves excavated for storage, and a tunnel into the kitchen garden 'these tunnels were dug, largely by miners from the Durham area who were serving time in the prison hulks.'
By the 1860s the Admiralty House land, including the kitchen garden and paddock (now Tulo Valley Nursery) totaled 23 acres.
At present the Admiralty House Park property totals 16.36 acres.
In 1822 Admiralty House was renamed Clarence House and the hill on which it stood, Clarence Hill. This was in honour of the Duke of Clarence. He later became William 1V and known as Sailor King.
Capt. H.J. Carr 1893. BHQ Vo.8.No.1.1951.
'In 1816 the present house, or rather the kernel of it, was bought by the Colony and made over to the Crown as the Admiral's house, a freehold gift costing them 3000 pounds currency, equivalent to 2,000 pounds sterling. The land turned over with the House was a strip running up from the sea, so restricted in the Eastern side as not to include even the present Secretary' s Quarters. The kitchen garden and paddock on the other side of the road were however part of the original grant.'
Survey of 1823 'the Navy Board express a strong desire that the annual repairs of Admiralty House should not exceed 50 pounds a year.'
Plans for a new house were drawn up in 1844 but the whole scheme fell through. The Bermudian. November 1956:36
William Eric Brockman in his book Bermuda Growth of a Naval Base describes Admiralty House as having two stories with possibly three or four rooms, surrounded by outhouses of servants' quarters, washhouses and stables.
(See also The Bermudian. Fall 2011 Admiralty House Park written by Elizabeth Jones.)
BM July 1946.
At the start of WW2 the Ballroom was converted into a Cypher Office. 'It was divided into 2 halves by a 10-foot partition, and one side furnished as Staff-room while the other was equipped as a Cypher Office. This excellent arrangement meant that the Cypher Officers had ready access to the Staff Office in case they need advice, and cut down on the necessity for telephoning. Both offices were of course, operating 24 hours a day.' Later in the War a new building was erected in the grounds for the Cypher Office.
Operations conducted in a converted ballroom and a wooden hut played an important part in 'bringing the "Battle of the Atlantic" to a successful conclusion against an enemy who for years had been equipping himself to destroy the shipping lanes in this part of the Western Hemisphere.'
Lord Dundonald, lived at Admiralty House from 1848 until 1850 and was responsible for the tunneling of caves for transporting goods.Stranack:62.
Vice Admiral Sir John Eaton was the last resident of Admiralty House and left in 1956.
18 Sept 1973. Recommendation to the Cabinet by the Minister of Works & Agriculture for the immediate demolition of Admiralty House when the Regiment has completed its withdrawal. Hon John M.S. Patton, G.C., M.P. Member for Public Works & Agriculture.
'On the 21st April, 1972, the Minister of Organization, the then Minister of Health and I, together inspected the building. It was apparent from the condition of the structure that it would not be an economic proposition to rehabilitate the property, and it was agreed that when vacated by the Regiment, the building should be demolished.
The Acting Deputy Governor has advised that His Excellency the Governor has drawn attention to the fact that when the Regiment finally withdraws from the building it could be a prime target for vandalism and will also be a fire hazard.'
Admiralty House was purposely burned on Jan 24th, 1974 on the order of the then Minister of Public Works, the Ballroom was spared due to the efforts of Mr. Chan McIvor and Mr. Stuart Hayward.
In 1975 the Admiralty House area became a public Park.
Department of Parks. Renovations to the Admiralty House Ball Room, Admiralty House Park. 2005
Since 1991 Pembroke Community Centre operated in Admiralty House Park as a nursery school, day camp and various range of functions. The lease for the Centre was revoked in 2001 for failure to upkeep the buildings, the tenant was finally evicted in 2002. 'Since that time, despite several attempts by the Department of Parks, the buildings have remained vacant awaiting renovation and a new use.'
No 12 Admiralty Lane: These 3 buildings were demolished in 2005. These were constructed as barracks during WW11.