299 Ballyquin Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A former 2 classroom single storey hipped and slated roof school building, now converted into a dwelling house. The window arrangements have been altered with stone chimney stack erected at N gable. New entrance door formed on east side and new rear entrance added with glazed porch. The present occupants have in their possession a metal plaque “County Londonderry Education Committee/Drumneechy Public Elementary School/Reconstructed 1939”.

Historical information

O.S. Memoirs describes “The Schoolhouse in townland of Drumneechy is a slated house in perfect good repair and well furnished. It was built in 1830 at an expense of 73 pounds sterling. The cost of erection was partly defrayed by the Kildare Street Society, the late Reverend William Robinson, Rector of the above parish, and several others. There is no accommodation in the house for a teacher. Length of the house from out to out is 26 and a half feet, breadth from out to out is 20 feet 10 inches, length in the clear 24 feet 3 inches, breadth in the clear is 18 and a half feet. The yard is well fenced and planted with forest trees supplied by Lord Waterford”.

The school was a Presbyterian pay school and was associated with Bovevagh Presbyterian church. The Kildare Street Society gave £15 towards cost of erection, while the rector gave £8.

The O.S. map Rev. 1856-68 sh. 25 shows a larger school so it may have been extended to a 2 teacher school and as yet no teacher’s house.

In 1939 under the County Londonderry Education Committee, which must have taken over responsibility for the school from the National School System, there were major renovations and during that refurbishment the school was held in house of W Meighan.

There was a partition between 2 classrooms with 2 teachers.

The school closed in June 1966 and after several years vacancy it was purchased by the present owner (2000) who converted the building to a dwelling.

The building is close to and parallel to the Ballyquin Road with former playground behind. The site is devoid of trees (see reference to trees under Historical Information above).

References

Primary Sources
1. O.S. map 1st Edition 1832 Londonderry sh. 25
2. O.S. map 1st Rev. 1856-58 Londonderry sh. 25
3. O.S. Memoirs of Ireland – Parishes of Co Londonderry IV 1824, 1833-5 p. 66
Ed. Angélique Day and Patrick McWilliams (QUB 1993).

Secondary Sources
1. Benbradagh 1996. Magazine published annually p.p. 1, 2

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

An interesting example of a small rural school of the late Georgian period established by the Kildare Street Society, later enlarged under the National School System and further renovated by the County Londonderry Education Committee in 1939. Closed as a school in 1966 and converted to a dwelling house.