Woodland Cottage

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

The house faces north-east alongside Springbank Road behind an ivy-covered wall with entry by a hooped iron gate. A small forecourt is defined by fieldstones and paths are gravelled.

Springbank Road, overlooking Downhill Forest, is accessed by making a sharp turn to the left (south) off the Limavady/Coleraine coast road about six miles from the former town. After travelling for about a quarter mile a further left turn and another quartyer of a mile (south-east) reveals the house.

The house is single storey with the roofspace now opened up and provided with two small balconies that also have the benefit of light from a small foursquare window in the right (north-east) gable. The early harled and whitened finish has been removed exposing the underlying stone work that has been re-pointed. This also draws attention to the raw concrete used to the making up of the parapet gables after a fairly recent collapse of part of the roof.

The roof is thatched between these parapets, each gable rises to a chimneystack and there is a further stack on the ridgeline left of centre over the kitchen hearth. The right hand (north-east) stack terminates in normal sized corbelling and supports one black clay pot with spark arrester. The other two exhibit deep corbelling, that at the centre has two black clay pots with spark arresters and the stack on the left hand (south-west) gable is without pots.

At the front of the house the earlier fenestration has been altered but without significant effect on overall character.

A window opening at the left-hand (south-west) end of the elevation has been altered to accommodate a timber sheeted half door. Beyond this the early entrance, with timber sheeted half door, is flanked to the left by two window openings in the earlier position and to the right there are now two closely spaced window openings in place of the earlier single window.
The widows are vertically sliding with sashes divided into two panes vertically, sashed stops are curved and sills are of traditional depths.

The left-hand (south-west) gable is blank.

At the rear the earlier arrangement has been altered from three vertically sliding windows of varying sizes by substituting a trio of equal proportions similar to those on the front elevation. They are provided with sills of traditional depths in contrast to the earlier windows that did not have these features. The rear entrance, with sheeted half door, remains in the original position between the two large sloping buttresses that are now in exposed stone to match the remainder of the building

Historical information

A building is shown on this site on the OS map of 1831 / 32, but not noted in the c.1833 valuation. The
references on the map accompanying the second valuation of 1856 are not clear and it is difficult to be certain if the property was occupied by a John Clarke and rated at 15/-, or by Patrick Brown and rated at 10/-, (both leasing from Sir Henry H. Bruce).

The roof was re-thatched in 1978 by Gerry Agnew using wheat straw. Repairs were carried out by Gerry Agnew in 1980, following the collapse of part of the roof, with further repairs undertaken by him in 1987 and 1989, each time using straw. In c.1990 accommodation was added to the upper floor.

The present owners acquired the house is in 1994 and thatching (by Gerry Agnew again, using flax) carried out the following year. A planning application for refurbishment was made in 1996 by Hunter Associates Architects of Ballymoney and external openings were modified and external plasterwork stripped as part of the subsequent scheme. A notice of intention to add an extension was received from the owners on 3 April 2001.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI VAL/1A/5/2 OS map, County Londonderry sheet 2, with valuation references, (1831 / 32-c.38)
2 PRONI VAL/1B/55A-B First valuation, Dunboe, (c.1833)
3 PRONI VAL/2A/5/2 Revised OS map, County Londonderry sheet 5, with valuation references, (1856 / 57)
4 PRONI VAL/2B/5/5A Second valuation, Dunboe, (1856)

Secondary sources
1 Girvan, W.D., ‘The Buildings of North Derry’ (Belfast 1975), p.58

Other references
1 EHS Monitoring of Thatched Buildings, report by Michele McFaul to EHS, 18 April 1994
2 Information from joint owner (June 2001)

Re-thatching by Gerry Agnew using wheat straw took place in 1978 at the time of occupancy by Mr L Brewster. The house was repaired in 1980 following the partial collapse of the roof structure and thatching was carried out by Gerry Agnew using straw. Further thatching was carried out by Gerry Agnew in 1987 and in 1989 using straw. In 1990 the house was purchased by Mrs Patricia Scott who added the accommodation on the upper floor. The present owners obtained the premises in 1994 and thatching was carried out by Gerry Agnew using flax in 1995.
A planning application for refurbishment of the house was made in 1996 by Hunter Associates Architects of Ballymoney
External openings have been modified and the external plasterwork was stripped as part of the scheme.
Notice of an intention to add an extension was received from the owners on 3 April 2001.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H+. Alterations enhancing the building
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
Z. Rarity

Evaluation

This thatched house is sited along the roadside and faces east The basic layout remains and the traditional appearance would be enhanced by the application of harling with a whitened finish. Alterations to the external openings are not offensive but the exposure of the smooth concrete at the apices of the gables has a denigrating effect on the character of the building. Introduction of a spiral staircase to give access to the balconies is an acceptable convenience.