Drumagarner House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A detached asymmetrical two-storey, three-bay Georgian-style farmhouse, built c. 1840. Rectangular on plan and located on an elevated rural site with a number of associated outbuildings nearby.

Replacement pitched natural slate roof with grey/blue angled ridge tiles and rebuilt brick chimneys to gable-ends having single octagonal clay pots. Half-round replacement metal rainwater goods mounted by wall driven brackets to projecting eaves course. Walling of main elevation is roughly coursed and squared blackstone rubble with red-brick dressings; remaining elevations are roughcast, having projecting smooth rendered plinth. Flat-arched window and door openings with stepped brick reveals and projecting stone sills to main elevation; projecting rendered sills and window reveals to other elevations. Windows are all replacement timber sashes, generally 3/6 unless otherwise stated.

Almost symmetrical north-facing elevation (right bay is slightly wider) with three windows across upper floor and four-panelled timber door to centre with plain glass transom over, having decorative glazing bars and original door furniture. 8/8 timber sash to either side of door.

East elevation is blank except for 2/2 diminutive window right-of-centre and 6/6 sash to left-side.

Rear (south) elevation has three windows across upper floor but ground floor has irregular fenestration with a variety of timber sashes; mono-pitched single-storey, roughcast return to right of centre. Return is slated with blank elevation; right cheek has timber sheeted and braced half-door; left cheek contains 6/6 window.

West elevation contains two 6/6 windows to upper floor with 15-pane timber door to right-of-centre below.

Setting:

Situated in a mature rural farmland
setting to the south of Kilrea, the north and west elevations are visible from the main Drumagarner Road. Accessed via modern blackstone and brick piers supporting replacement metal gates at main entrance, leading to a gravel hedge-lined path and gravel carparks to front and west of house. Vegetable garden to north, with whitewashed single-storey and corrugated iron roofed (formerly thatched) outbuilding having rubblestone walls and timber sheeted and braced doors. West room used as turf store with straw-filled sacks in roof to insulate; east room has concrete floor with exposed rubble walls and some original/ late 19th century roof beams and rafters. Further outbuildings to rear of main house; south-east (former piggery) has been refurbished in recent years with some uPVC windows inserted, replacement slate roof. Outbuilding to south used as a shed having large timber sheeted barn doors, corrugated metal roof with new timber trusses, roughcast walls to exterior and some rubblestone and rendered to interior.

Roof: Slate
Walling: Black squared rubblestone/roughcast
Windows: Replacement timber-framed sash
RWG: Replacement metal

Historical information

The house was constructed between 1830-53 on the site of previous farm buildings. First shown on the second edition OS map (1853), with a number of associated outbuildings located nearby; the house and eastern out-building are all that now remain.

Leased by a Rev. John T. Paul and occupied by a farmer, Andrew Adams, the buildings alone were listed in Griffith’s Valuation (1857) at a value of £3. A small house, also located on the 21 acres of land was listed at £0 5s and was leased by the occupier to a James Torrens. There was little change in the value of the house and buildings, which remained under occupation by the Adams family. The outbuildings to the west were removed during the latter half of the 19th century and replaced by those constructed to the south-east of the main house; as illustrated by the third edition OS map (1905). A proportion of these outbuildings remain to the rear of the house.

The Census Records (1901) show there were five members of the family residing in the main house and the outbuildings comprised a stable, two cow houses, a piggery and a barn; John Adams also leased out two small thatched houses, each valued at £0 5s (Annual Revisions 1898-1910). Although the main house underwent little change, the 1911 Census Records show the outbuildings were expanded with a stable, shed, piggery, calf-house and coach-house having been added by 1911.

The Annual Revisions (1910-1929) illustrate that in 1916 John Adams purchased both the land and buildings from a Robert Newton, under the Wyndham Land Purchase Act c1903, which sought to transfer ownership to the occupiers. By 1935 the house, buildings and land were owned by a John Hutchinson, who also leased out two houses contained on the land; however, the value of the main house had fallen to £1 in the First General Revaluations (1935).

The building has been renovated in recent years after falling into poor state of repair. All that remains of the original is the exterior walls.

References

1. PRONI OS/6/5/27/1 – First Edition Ordnance Survey map (1830)
2. PRONI OS/6/5/27/2 – Second Edition Ordnance Survey map (1853)
3. PRONI OS/6/5/27/3 – Third Edition Ordnance Survey map (1905)
4. PRONI OS/6/5/27/4 – Fourth Edition Ordnance Survey map (1925-33)
5. PRONI OS/10/5/27/5/1 – First Edition Ordnance Survey County map (1905)
6. PRONI OS/10/5/27/5/2 – Second Edition Ordnance Survey County map (1925)
7. PRONI VAL/2/B/5/40B – Griffith’s Valuation (1857)
8. PRONI VAL/12/B/29/2A – Annual Revisions (1867-84)
9. PRONI VAL/12/B/29/2B – Annual Revisions (1884-97)
10. PRONI VAL/12/B/29/2C – Annual Revisions (1898-1910)
11. PRONI VAL/12/B/29/2D – Annual Revisions (1910-29)
12. PRONI VAL/3/E/5/2A – First General Revaluations (1935)
13. PRONI VAL/4/B/5/6 – Second General Revaluations (1956-72)

14. Census of Ireland (1901-1911)

Secondary Sources

1. Lewis, Samuel ‘A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland’ S. Lewis & Co, London (1837)
2. ‘Ordnance Survey Memoirs; The Parishes of Co. Londonderry, VIII [Vol. 27] - Desertoghill, Errigal, Killelagh and Kilrea, 1830-39’ Institute of Irish Studies, Queen’s University, Belfast (1994)
3. Curl, James. S. ‘The Londonderry Plantation 1609-1914’ Phillimore & Co, Chichester (1986) 4. Kernohan, J.W. ‘The Parishes of Kilrea and Tamlaght O'Crilly A sketch of their history, with an account of the ?Boveedy Congregation’ Coleraine, (1912)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

R. Age
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Drumagarner House is a two-storey detached farmhouse, c.1840. Plainly detailed and largely symmetrical, the building is characterised by the main façade of black rubblestone walls which is punctuated by the stepped brick reveals. The building has been renovated in recent years after falling into poor state of repair and historic fabric is limited to the exterior walls. Despite this the house constitutes an example of the more formalised farmhouse design and makes a significant contribution in defining the rural historic fabric of the wider Kilrea area. The associated range of traditional outbuildings add to the interest of the farmhouse.

General comments

Listing Criteria R - Age also applies to this building.