Building 115

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Single storey, red brick, former school building, with hipped roofs and gables aligning east west on the northern boundary of the site. The structure is in fact two complimentary buildings with a later link block between.

To the west of the main south facade, a gable with 3 high windows, sandstone coping and kneelers. Windows are tall and equally spaced with segmental heads. Plinth course below. Adjacent to the east, a hipped roof entrance block of similar width with a gabled parapet and a semicircular headed entrance recess. This forms the south façade of the first building. Two 6 over 6 PVC windows to each side of the entrance are flanked by two smaller 4 over 4 PVC. The entrance door is inside a lobby with 5 vertical panes in the fanlight and 2 plain sheeted doors.

Behind this block, the main roof of the building returns east before meeting a gable parapet. Beyond this to the west, the roof drops down as a link block meeting a second similar building with gable parapet to the west. The second main building is taller because of the rise in the road to the west with a central pitched roof and gables with sandstone copings. It presents two smaller gables to the road passing to the south of the building. They are of similar width to the blocks on the façade of the western building. Each gable has 3 windows (lower than first described) sandstone parapets and kneelers and high level slit vents. A central door between the two gables with an arched head and flat roof above has been bricked up.

On the west elevation of the first building the man made slate roof returns with a simple 2 brick corbel. A second group of 3 windows matching those on the front façade steps up into a gable matching the width of that to the front. The plinth course returns. Thre is a modern footpath detail.

To the rear the same gable details are expressed. Adjacent to the west the wall steps back by one brick and two windows sit up into tall gabled dormers capped with sandstone copings. Beyond, the rear of the central ‘link block’ sits forward by one metre. Three windows are separated by brick piers, one blocked up. The rear of the second building to the east has a composed elevation of gabled dormers. A central dormer, two windows wide, is flanked by two single dormers.

The east elevation has 3 tall windows with segmental head lighting the large room inside.

Historical information

Building first indicated on the 1904 map as two separate buildings with a wall between and walls to the boundary where probable toilet blocks are located. Buildings still separated in 1933 but link block constructed in 1955. Toilet blocks and yard walls to the rear removed by 1977. From the architecture it is clear that this is a purpose built school for Army families which, from the maintenance of the yard wall, may have functioned until the 1950s but probably stopped with the Second World War. In conjunction with the married soldiers’ quarters to the north east built at the same time, it is a reflection of the changing nature of barrack life in the early twentieth century with the introduction of families. Presently used for storage, the school for children of soldiers’ families is now located in Ballykelly.

References-
Primary sources

Ordnance Survey Maps 1831, 1854, 1873, 1904, 1933, 1955
O’Hagan’s Map of Londonderry 1847
Derry Journal 6th April 1841 ‘Notice to Builders’

Secondary sources
History of Ebrington Barracks (Anonymous, circa 1970’s) EHS files
Site officer 2003.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Single storey, red brick, former school building, with hipped roofs and gables aligning east west on the northern boundary of Ebrington Barracks.

A purpose built barrack school building of the late nineteenth century, more recently adapted to use as stores. Considered elevation altered by later additions but still complimentary to the architectural and historical character of its surroundings. Construction of main interior rooms of note. Of historic interest as part of the development of Army Barracks to include families in this period.However the building is not considered to meet the legislative test for protection of special architectural and historic interest.