Building No 71

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Two storey, 5 bay house in Georgian style with chimneys on gables and natural slate roof with red decorative tile ridge. Central single storey flat roofed ( modern repair) projecting porch with entrance to west. All windows align and are surrounded by plaster ‘lugged’ architrave decoration. Similar decoration to door. Disabled access ramp and steps in concrete with tubular painted handrails. Basement to building surrounded by cast iron balustrade on sandstone coping exposed to front and rear but paved over to sides (vault underneath). To south side wall returns to meet original wall of the base now rendered and painted. Door in side wall with sandstone architrave and semi-circle lead arching to meet below chimney.

North gable blank but with 2 flue routes projecting which meet via an arch below the chimney.

Granite stairs to basement at rear. Central 2 storey return with lean-to roof flanked by 2 windows to each side (pvc). Metal escape door and fire escape at first floor of return. Pvc rainwater goods on corbeled, painted stone bracket. Large rooflight flush with the centre of the natual slate roof above. Stone cills.

South gable similar to north. Wall projecting to fragment of original boundary wall unrendered to this side and remaining as whinstone (local blue grey schist). Pigs back (semi-circular) painted sandstone coping to wall.

Building faces west on to the parade ground and is symmetrical about the centre with the similarly proportioned Number 63.

Historical information

Building built as part of the original group around the parade ground and is labelled as the ‘Officers’ Mess Room’ on the 1854 Ordnance Survey Map. This may account for the decorative detail around the openings of this building in contrast to its neighbours around the square. With the creation of a new larger Officers’ Mess in 1903, this house functioned as officer accommodation. At the time of survey in 2003 it functioned as the base medical and dental centre.

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’
Dedication plaque of barracks

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

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A two storey, 5 bay house in Georgian style with chimneys on gables and natural slate roof with red decorative tile ridge. A well-proportioned and considered house. It forms a carefully composed part of the buildings surrounding the parade ground at Ebrington Barracks. Its interior layout and fittings contribute to the building’s interest though the removal of original windows and a heavy-handed roof repair to the porch detract at the time of survey detract from this. Its setting, relative to the parade ground and city, is an important part of its interest. Perimeter railing and kerb details and the surviving fragment of boundary wall add to its character.