58 Castle Street, Ballycastle, Co Antrim, BT54 6AR

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Plain, modernised two storey terrace shop with dwelling of possible later 18th century construction and at one time part of a larger property with no.56, now with modern shop front, modern window frames and artificial ‘slates’. The building is set on the N side of Castle Street, to W of Ballycastle town centre.

The asymmetrical front elevation faces S. To the left on the ground floor is the dwelling doorway with consists of a modern partly glazed door with large rectangular fanlight and narrow sidelight (to right). To the right of this is a large shop front with simple modern glazing and a recessed doorway with modern glazed door (of circa 1950's style). Painted timber signboard over shop front mosaic in step beside curved window. To the first floor are three unevenly-spaced windows with modern timber frames with lattice panes. [Two windows to left of these actually look as if they belong to no.56 but in fact belong to no.58.] The front elevation is rendered and painted. Projecting Neon Christmas decoration between second and third windows, satellite dish to far right.

The rear elevation is completely covered by a large, two storey gabled return, which has been extended to the W side by means of two and single storey lean-tos. The single storey lean-to has a timber door and sash window (2/2 vertical glazing bars). To the W face are two similar windows. To the S this lean-to abuts the two storey lean-to, which has a window to the N and W faces of the first floor level, both with modern frames. To the ground floor of the W face the two storey lean-to is abutted by a very small single storey lean-to which belongs to no.56. The return / lean-tos are finished in a mixture of roughcast and dry dash. To the N gable of the return there extends a long low two storey gabled outbuilding in basalt rubble and corrugated iron covered roof, which is pre 1834 and originally contained some small dwellings. There used to be a similar row on the opposite side of the yard (once known as ‘Boyd’s Yard’] but these have been demolished.

The roof of the main building and the return are both covered in an artificial ‘slate’ with two Velux windows to front of main roof and another to W side of return roof. Rendered chimney stack to E end of main roof, another to gable of return. PVC rw goods.

Historical information

The first valuation of December 1834* records that a large old (grade ‘1C+’) house of similar dimensions to the present nos.56 and 58, on the site of this and its neighbour to the west, then occupied by an Adam Boyd and a Patrick Black. As the later valuations do not record any major structural changes to the property we can assume that eastern half of the large dwelling of 1834 is that we see today. The (combined) property was probably one of the 127 two storey houses mentioned in the OS Memoirs of 1835, and like much of the structures within Castle Street may date from c.1740-70, when the town assumed much of its present form under improving landlord Hugh Boyd; significant sections of the internal detailing suggests that it does indeed date from the 18th century.

The valuation of 1834 also tells us that in the large yard to the rear (‘Boyd’s Yard’) there was a ‘range of poor dwellings’ the upper parts of which were used as ‘offices’ (i.e. stores or outbuildings). These dwellings were originally sited on both sides of the yard, but only those to the west side now survive (albeit solely as outbuildings). The Adam Boyd listed as one of the 1834 occupants may be the man of the same name listed as a grocer in Pigot & Co’s 1824 Directory.

By 1859 the large house had been split into two properties, with the present no. 58 occupied by an Andrew Boyd and containing a ‘parlour and kitchen below, two rooms over and garrets, kitchen in return and room over’. To the rear the range of small dwellings (seven in all) were occupied by John Sharpe, James Kenny, Patrick Carroll, John Hunter, Daniel McCollum, Mary [?McCrank] and Charles McDougall. The range also contained a bakery, presumably in the south end close to the return. (Interestingly the present shop is an outlet for a local bakery!)

Andrew Boyd appears to have been followed as occupant by an Eliza McCambridge in 1874 and a James McCurdy in 1906. McCurdy was followed by a John Glass in 1923, whose family remained there until the [?mid] 1980s (running a grocers shop from the premises). The shop was acquired by the present occupants in c.1986 becoming an outlet for their local bakery, whilst the living quarters were renovated and rented out.

Most of the small houses to the rear were finally abandoned some time prior to 1923, for they are recorded as ‘in ruins’ in that year, though one of them (possibly that closest to the return over the former bakery) appears to have been occupied up until 1950. The row on the opposite side of the yard was demolished c.1980s.

[*Note on primary sources- Though Ballycastle has its full compliment of valuation books dating back to 1834, the earliest extant valuation plan of the town (indeed the earliest large scale plan) is that dating from 1898. This means that though the first and second valuations -of 1834 and 1859 respectively- present the usual detailed accounts of properties throughout the town, bereft of their contemporary plans it is almost impossible to discover exactly to which buildings the valuers are referring. The writer has circumvented this problem however by adopting the somewhat involved method of reading the records backwards- i.e. taking the more recent (mid 20th century) valuations and tracing each building back from these, using the 1898 map as a marker along the way.]

References- Primary sources
1 ‘Pigot & Co’s City of Dublin and Hibernian Commercial Directory (Manchester 1824)
2 OS Memoirs, Parish of Ramoan, 1831-39, reprinted in ‘Ordnance Survey memoirs of Ireland…’ ed Angelique Day, Patrick McWilliams and Noirin Dobson (Belfast, QUB, 1994), p.92 etc
3 PRONI OS/6/1/8/1 OS map, Co Antrim, sh 8, 1832
4 PRONI VAL/1B/135 First valuation, Ramoan parish, 1834
5 Samuel Lewis, ‘Topographical history of Ireland’ (London, 1837)
6 ‘Slater’s National Commercial Directory of Ireland (Manchester, 1846)
7 ‘Slater’s National Commercial Directory of Ireland (Manchester, 1856)
8 PRONI OS/6/1/8/2 OS map, Co Antrim, sh 8, 1856
9 PRONI VAL/2B/1/28c Second valuation, Ramoan parish, 1859
10 PRONI VAL/12B/2/3a-g Annual valuation revision books, Ballycastle ED, 1864-1921
11 ‘Slater’s Royal National Commercial Directory of Ireland (Manchester, 1870)
12 PRONI VAL/12E/8/1/1-3 Valuation plan of Ballycastle, 1898-c.1935
13 PRONI VAL/12E/8/2/1 Valuation plan of Ballycastle, c.1905
14 PRONI VAL/12B/2/5a-c Annual valuation revision books, Ballycastle UD, 1921-31
15 PRONI VAL/3G/6/1/1-3 Valuation plan of Ballycastle, 1934-50
16 PRONI VAL/3B/1/5 First general revaluation of Northern Ireland, Ballycastle UD, 1935
17 PRONI VAL/3C/1/6 First general revaluation of Northern Ireland, 1936-57

Secondary sources
1 Francis Price, ‘British Carpenter’ (?London, 1735)
2 Abraham Swan, ‘The British Architect or Builders’ Treasury of Staircases’ (1745)
3 Dan Cruickshank & Neil Burton, ‘Life in the Georgian City’ (London, 1990)
4 Steven Parissien, ‘The Georgian House’ (London, 1995)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
Z. Rarity

Evaluation

Plain,partly modernised two storey terrace shop with dwelling of possible later 18th century construction and at one time part of a larger property with no.56, now with circa 1950's shop front, window frames and artificial ‘slates’. To the rear is a long two storey pre 1834 outbuilding, which contained small dwellings up until the mid 20th century. This property still exhibits signs of its considerable age and forms an important part of the streetscape.