Thatched House.

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A single storey thatched house five bays long, direct entry, with back door opposite. Basalt built and pointed, originally gable hearth then extended. Three chimneys. Four bays thatched with chimney at either end, to the east a roof of corrugated asbestos over out houses. To the west, corrugated metal roof over cottage and out houses. The buildings are all in line making the familiar long structure of the Magilligan area. All the windows are sliding sash to the front of the house, the kitchen window is divided in four panes, the other four are small 12 paned. The entrance door is sheeted. At the rear there is a single modern window to the kitchen. The walls under the thatch and corrugated asbestos are basalt but butter pointed, the remainder of the out houses are rendered. The thatch is marram grass or ‘bent’ turned down to form the typical ‘fringe’ and neatly trimmed. The present thatch is two years old. Concrete blocks are left projecting from the walls as if it is intended to erect a rear porch or scullery.

The long building runs along the contour and while it is set back about five metres from the road side there is a considerable rise in the ground. Across the road are a number of other single storey derelict small dwellings and out houses. To the east of the house and in a hollow the remains of mills.

Historical information

A building is shown on this site on the OS map of 1830-31 and recorded in the contemporary valuation as the home of a James McLaughlin, with the rateable value noted as £2-5-0. Unfortunately, in common with many of the valuation returns in this area of County Londonderry, no dimensions are supplied.

In the second valuation of 1857, exactly the same details are recorded (although the James McLaughlin of this date may not be the same person as that of 1831), along with a lessor, Sir Frederick Heygate. Interestingly, by this date the portion to the west of the present house was also a dwelling, then occupied by a John McLaughlin.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI VAL/1A/5/5 OS map, County Londonderry sheet 5, with valuation
references, (1830 / 31-c.38)
2 PRONI VAL/1B/519A-C First valuation, Magilligan, (1831)
3 PRONI VAL/2A/5/5A Revised OS map, County Londonderry sheet 5, with valuation references, (1857)
4 PRONI VAL/2B/5/23 Second valuation, Magilligan, (1857)

The building is indicated on the Ordnance Survey Sheet of 1831 but obviously most of the roofs have been replaced the thatch renewed from time to time.

References

Ordnance Survey Sheet 1831
Buildings of North Derry U A H S

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
F. Structural System
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

W. Northern Ireland/International Interest
Z. Rarity

Evaluation

A good example of marram thatched roof, direct entry traditional house with basalt walls. Scarcity of examples of this type merits listing.