Gresteel House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Sited between the main Derry/Limavady Road and Lough Foyle in flat farm land of well kept generous fields and forming a cluster with other dwellings and dotted with mature trees. Foyle Avenue wends its way between the houses and runs north to serve other homesteads. The main facade faces east towards the main road. The house is bounded on east and south with garden and hedge, to the west the farmyard and to the north fields. Within the garden is a fine Araucaria Imbricata (Monkey Puzzle) placed directly in line with the front door and now possibly past its prime. On the south side there is a handsome Juglans Rejia (Common Walnut). The front of the house is smothered in a Virginian Creeper which conceals much architectural detail.

A three bay wide two storey gabled, later Victorian style medium size house with one bay two storey back return which has a single storey lean-to at right angles to it. Central fanlighted panelled doorway with tripartite windows on ground floor on either side, above a single round headed window over doorway with pairs of round headed windows on either side, square string course defining first floor, paired modillions at eaves with moulded string course forming cornice. Ground floor windows decorated with panelled pilasters and cornices, first floor windows similarly treated. Decorative treatment difficult to appreciate because of Virginia Creeper covering entire south facade and west gables. Main facade smooth rendered. On ground floor emphasised V-joints in imitation ashlar, gable walls lined and rear walls harled and painted white. Windows are sliding sashes, each divided horizontally in two with original porcelain sash fittings. Main door, four panels, top two glazed with rounded heads, original ironmongery in good condition. Windows to back returns in Georgian panes. Those to lean-to portion modern. Roof has natural slates, brick chimneys, the whole exterior well maintained. Lean-to back returns slated with asbestos slates.

From the east gable projects narrow outhouse with natural slated roof, lean-to with back wall built in stone, outhouse returns northward to form an enclosed yard. The use of the high stone wall to the south makes a good foil to house facade.

Historical information

The Ordnance Survey Map of 1830 shows a cluster of dwellings in close formation in this location and either side of the roadway now known as Foyle Avenue, not unlike a clachan grouping. The field pattern is of narrow strips running north - south. Most of these dwellings with the possible exception of one have been removed. The remaining one, just east of Greysteel House, remains, much renovated. It is said to retain some stone and mud walls and is in the same ownership as Greysteel House. Of the buildings within the owner's farmyard and dwelling none appear to be of the 1830 date.

The present house appears to date from c1880 and this would include the lean-to outhouses. It is not referred to in the Griffiths V.B. nor shown on the O.S. of 1858. The owner had a magazine article from Illustrated America, framed, 1896 and showing a photograph of his house as typical of a Scotch-Irish house with an example of a Scotch-Irish house in America. In front of the house is shown the young Araucaria Imbricata approximately eaves height, roughly 16 years growth. The Monkey Puzzle is still there, now a little past its best.

The architect for the house may have been A Given of Limavady or Barker of Derry. Certainly the house style is reminiscent of Barker.

References:

Ordnance Survey Sheet 1830, 1858, 1924
Griffith’s V B 1858
Owner (1998)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
V. Authorship

Evaluation

A fine example of a medium sized two storey late Victorian style farmhouse carefully designed with good typical external and internal proportions, well preserved ornamentation and plan form It is of historic interest and illustrates an important stage in the development from clachan formation to a better-off farmer’s homestead. Likewise the field pattern shows the transformation from narrow strips to bigger enclosures.