The Homestead, Homestead Park and the Garden House

The Homestead is an Arts and Crafts house built by Seebohm Rowntree as his family home. The architect was Fred Rowntree, second cousin to Seebohm and a noted architect .In 1935 Seebohm directed his second poverty study of York , Progress and Poverty published in 1941, from here. On his departure the house was sold to the Joseph Rowntree Village Trust on condition that the gardens be maintained as a public park. Peter Rowntree, Seebohm’s son and a Rowntree company director, lived there as the trust’s tenant until 1978, following which the house was converted to the head office of Rowntree Mackintosh Ltd. In 1988 when Nestle took over Rowntree Mackintosh, the company offices moved back to Haxby Road and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation moved its main office into the Homestead. All three of the Rowntree trusts now have their offices on this site. The JRF continue to own and manage the gardens of Homestead Park as a public space.