Castle Farm

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Picturesque two storey estate farmhouse of 1855 with large gabled bay, gabled porch, overhanging verge and eaves and label mouldings. The house is situated within the Glenarm Castle estate, roughly a mile SW of the castle itself and the village of Glenarm.

The front elevation faces roughly S and is asymmetrical. To the centre of the ground floor is a single storey gabled porch. The S (gabled) face of the porch has a four panelled timber door with pointed arch containing three pane fanlight. The E face of the porch has a small pointed arch fixed pane window. To the left of the porch is a large projecting two storey gabled bay. To the centre of the ground floor of the S face of the bay is a 2/2 sash window (vertical glazing bars) with smooth cement window surround and drip moulding and label stop. To the centre of the first floor is a window as before while to the apex of the gable is a small pointed arch headed fixed light window.

To the ground floor of the W face of the bay is a window as before while to the first floor there is a stone shield with the carved date of 1855. The E face of the bay is much obscured by the porch but is otherwise blank. To the right of the porch is a window as before.

The W gable has a large sash window to left on the ground floor (vertical glazing bars- 3/3). To the first floor are two smaller sash windows with Georgian panes (6/6). The upper windows have label moulding as front.

The E gable has a sash window to right on the ground floor (Georgian panes 6/6), with two first floor. To the apex of the gable there is a small fixed light window as front gable. All these windows (apart from that to apex) have label moulding.

To the left side of the rear (N) elevation is a small single storey return which merges with a long single storey outbuilding. The E face of the return has a window and a doorway while the W face has a store door to the left and to the right is a recessed porch with a panelled door. To the right of the return (on main two storey section) is a tall window having a fixed light having semi-circular arched frame with margin panes. To the right of this is a large kitchen window with a Georgian-paned double-sash frame (3/6, 3/6). To the left side of the first floor there is a Georgian-paned sash window (3/6).

The façade is covered in a relatively recent looking ‘rough cast’. The slated gabled roof has an overhang with plain barge boards etc. There are two rendered chimneystacks (to main E and W gables). Small Velux window to rear. Cast iron rw goods.

The outbuildings comprise a courtyard of single and two storey farmyard buildings. They have whitewashed stone walls with double pitched natural slate roofs. Within the courtyard are later open sheds with curved corrugated roofs on steel lattice trusses. The farmyard buildings form an attractive complex and add to the character of the farmhouse.

Historical information

This house was built in 1855 as the residence of the manager of the Glenarm estate farm (or ‘Castle Farm’). It is shown on the OS map of 1858 along with the collection of outbuildings, the saw-mill and miller’s house to the north and west. The year previous to this the farm was leased to William and Thomas Orr, the lease mentioning ‘the farm steading and offices, thrashing machine..[and]..water power’.

1 PRONI D.2977/3A/4/1/113 Antrim Papers Lease of the Castle farm, Mark, Earl of Antrim to William and Thomas Orr, 1 June 1857
2 PRONI D.2977/17/1 Antrim Papers Inventory of the Castle Farm
3 PRONI D.2977/18/2/1-65 Antrim Papers Account books, cash books, sales books etc. relating to Castle Farm, 1870-1937
4 PRONI OS/6/1/29/2 OS map, Co Antrim, sh 29, 1857-58
5 PRONI OS/6/1/29/3 OS map, Co Antrim, sh 29, 1903

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
H-. Alterations detracting from building
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Picturesque two storey estate farmhouse of 1855 with large gabled bay, gabled porch, overhanging verge and eaves and label mouldings. The property was originally built as the residence for the manager of the Glenarm Castle estate farm manager, and forms an attractive group with the stone outbuildings.

General comments

Previously recorded as HB06/02/103.