Galloway House

About Galloway House

This private house can be seen at the start of the Whithorn Way walk. From the car park, and a rear view is glimpsed as you round the shore in the direction of Garlieston village. Lord Alexander Garlies, son of the fifth Earl of Galloway and the Machars’ greatest landowner, built the house in 1740 and it was then added to by successive Earls including the lodges, leisure drives and gardens. You may notice the long stone estate walls – these were built by Napoleonic prisoners of war. After the estate changed hands, when financial ruin forced the Galloways to sell in 1908, it became a hospital for recuperating servicemen. Later, it was sold to Glasgow Corporation to enable children from the city to learn in a rural environment. Today, it is privately owned. The most impressive room in the house is said to be the two-storeyed entrance hall, added in 1909, by architect Robert Lorimer.