Former Saw Miller's house

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Simple, gabled two storey rubble built house of perhaps c.1850, formerly the Glenarm Castle estate saw miller’s residence and situated next to the former saw mill itself. The property is located within the estate grounds, roughly a mile SW of the castle itself.

The front elevation faces roughly E and is asymmetrical. To the right of centre on the ground floor is a half glazed panelled door. To the far left is a sash window with Georgian panes (6/6) while to the right of this is a blocked window opening. To the right of the door is a window, as before. To the first floor are a further two windows as before. On the left side of the elevation is evidence that there was once a lean-to outbuilding attached; this is now completely demolished.

To the left side of the N gable is a small flat roofed boiler house extension; to the right side is a sash window as before. The S gable, (which is built on the squint), is blank apart from a small window to the right of centre on the ground floor, which has a modern frame.

To far right of the ground floor of the rear W elevation is one modern multi-pane window while to the first floor there are three sash windows as before.

The façade is finished in basalt rubble. As mentioned above, part of the front façade shows evidence of the one time presence of an abutting structure. The area of the front that this structure once covered is white-washed. The gabled roof is covered with natural slates and has a slight overhang to eaves with plain barges. Cast iron rw goods. Chimneystack to the N gable (in stone) and S gable (in render).

To immediate S of the house is a long tow storey rubble-built gabled outbuilding. To the E this is abutted at a right angle by a shorter single storey gable building. The smaller building was the saw mill and appears to have originally had a water-wheel to its N gable.

Historical information

This house is shown on the OS map of 1858, but not that of 1832. The property originally acted as the estate saw miller’s residence, with the water-powered saw mill itself located just to the east. It is possible that it was built around 1855, at the same time as the Castle Farm buildings just to the south, however the extant saw mill records within the Antrim Papers (mainly account books) begin in 1852, suggesting that the house could be earlier.

Markings to the left side of the front façade of the house indicate that it was once abutted by a single storey building. It is possible that this single storey section was actually integrated in some way with its larger neighbour and that part of the house itself acted as a workshop or a store of some kind (the present interior appears too spacious for the home of a humble saw miller).

Records suggest that the saw mill remained in operation until at least 1921.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI D.2977/63/1-5 Antrim Papers Records of the Glenarm saw mill, 1852-21
2 PRONI D.2977/18/2/1-65 Antrim Papers Account books, cash books, sales books etc. relating to Castle Farm, 1870-1937
3 PRONI OS/6/1/29/2 OS map, Co Antrim, sh 29, 1857-58
4 PRONI OS/6/1/29/3 OS map, Co Antrim, sh 29, 1903

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

A surviving blackstone estate building and with its outbuildings in reasonable structural condition. The interior of the dwelling house has been altered. The group is not without character but is not sufficiently "special" to merit being listed.

General comments

Previously recorded as HB06/02/105.