Sites and Monument Record: Kerse House (SMR 792)

Description
A 15th century tower house lay in the heart of the later mansion.
The site lay within the old ICI Recreation grounds. Demolished February 2012 and new warehouses built by Asda.

Object detail

Site type
Site
dwelling house
Site history notes
"Carss Castell" is depicted in maps on Pont's map and appears as "Cars" in 1685 (Adair), "Carss" in 1745 (Molls), "Carse" 1755 (Roy) and "Kersehouse" 1817 (Grassom). The first mention of a tower and fortilice at Kerse is in a charter of 1508. Kerse House was described in 1840 as pleasantly situated in the middle of a finely wooded park and the "chief ornament of the eastern Carse" (Begg et al 1845, 12-13). The original part of the buidling at this time was noted to be very ancient, though with alterations and additions its appearance then was Elizabethen. John Adam designed part of the house in 1763. The later house was designed by John Tait of Edinburgh and completed by 1831 for the Dundas family. The house empty at the beginning of the Second World War and was used by the army and Home Guard for explosives training. It was mostly demolished in 1957, but further clearance occurred in 1984.
Site grid ref
NS 9155 8163
Conservation status
Post-Medieval

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