In 1536 the Nunnykirk estate, including a tower, was owned by the abbots of Newminster Abbey but fell to the Crown on the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

Grey later sold it to the Ward family of Morpeth who built a manor house.

Their son William Orde, Jr. (1774–1843) rebuilt the house in a grand style designed by architect John Dobson in 1825.

William Orde, Jr. established a racing stud at Nunnykirk and both he and his nephew and heir Charles William Orde (1810–1875) enjoyed considerable success as breeders.

Since 1977, the house was occupied by a special needs school, known as Nunnykirk Centre for Dyslexia.