1-6 Coastguard cottages

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A terrace of six cottages, single-storey and 1½-storey, with varying ridge heights stepping down a slight slope, with a small annex attached to no. 6, now known as no.7. Nos. 1 to 6 have a projecting lean-to porch and all of them have a red brick chimney, rebuilt.

Roofing, wall finishes, and windows and other elements vary from cottage to cottage as follows on south or entrance front -

No. 1: Bangor blue slates in regular courses; cast iron gutter; wall of rubble harled and whitened with later smooth cement render around window; one window, rectangular timber fixed light with top-hung vent; ledged timber door; concrete area in front of house with red and yellow tiles outside door.

No. 2: roof continuous with previous; cast iron gutter and downpipe; wall as previous; two windows, one up, one down, top one timber sliding sash, vertically hung, 1 over 1, with horns; lower one as on no. 1; timber door ledged and glazed; concrete area in front of house.

No. 3: roof continuous with nos. 1 and 2; wall as previous; four windows, two up and two down, as corresponding on no. 2; ledged timber half-door with plain rectangular fanlight; rough stone cobbled area in front of house, with small concrete area outside door, and loose stones enclosing planted area to each side of door.

No. 4: roof of asbestos slates in regular courses with small rooflight; gutter and downpipe as on no. 3; wall rendered with dry dash of limestone chippings; two windows as on ground floor of no. 3; door as on no. 2; concrete area in front of house.

No. 5: roof as no. 4 with small rooflight; wall roughcast using crushed stones; PVC hopper and downpipe from porch; one window as previous to ground floor; door as no. 4; concrete area in front of house.

No. 6: roof continuous with no. 5; walls and door as no. 5; one window as previous to ground floor; to right hand extremity, a lower single-storey outbuilding with one timber fixed light each side of a timber ledged half-door; roof as nos. 1-3; concrete area in front of house.

No. 7: single-storey; roof of Bangor blue slates in regular courses with chimney on right hand gable; wall, rubble masonry, harled and whitened, with black painted strip around base; brick jambs to doorway, painted white; ledged timber half-door in centre between two windows; window to left, timber fixed light, wooden head tucked up into eaves, painted reveals; no cill; window to right, as previous but head clear of eaves; concrete area in front of house.

East elevation -

East gable of no.6: smooth cement rendered; one window to first floor left hand side, timber fixed light with top-hung vent; plain reveals; no cill.

East gable of no.7: wall as entrance front, blank.

North or rear elevation -
No.7: one window wide; roof slated as front; wall, rubble masonry, harled and whitened, with some roughcast using crushed stones; one window, timber fixed light, old, two panes, with horizontal glazing bar; wooden window head; brick jambs, painted; concrete cill, painted.

No.6: one window wide; asbestos slates in regular courses, with two flush rooflights, original; metal gutter, no downpipes; wall of rubble basalt, harled and whitened, but patches of original masonry showing; one window, side hung timber casement two-pane, replacement; plain reveals, no cill.

No.5: two windows wide; roof continuous with no.6 with cement upstand to coping to left; two flush rooflights, original; wall as no.6 but large projecting boulder of basalt to right hand side; gutter as no.6; two windows, timber fixed light with top-hung vent, new, with concrete cills; recent cement render to reveals and head of window to left; crack in window head plasterwork of one to right.

No.4: three windows wide; roof of asbestos slates in regular courses contained by cement coping to gable at left hand side; one flush rooflight, old; wall, rubble basalt harled and whitened in part, with a projecting basalt boulder at ground level, left hand extremity; three windows, two large timber fixed lights with top-hung vent, with wooden heads, concrete cills, and brick jambs, painted; one window small three-pane central pivoted tucked up into eaves at right hand side.

No.3: two windows wide; roof of Bangor blue slates ending flush with left hand gable; metal gutter, no downpipe; wall as no.4 but some painted brickwork to left hand extremity. Two windows to ground floor: to left, timber fixed light with top-hung vent, plain reveals and head plastered, concrete cill; to right, timber sliding sash, vertically hung, 2 over 1, with horns, original, set in similar opening to previous. Two windows to first floor, both timber sliding sash, vertically hung, 1 over 1, with horns, with wooden head tucked up into eaves.

No.2: one window wide; roof and gutter continuous with no.3; two flush rooflights, old; wall, rubble harled and whitened with projecting basalt boulders along base; one window, timber fixed light with top-hung vent, new concrete cill, recent cement render to reveals.

No.1: two windows wide; roof, gutter, and wall continuous with no.2. Two windows to ground floor: to left, timber side hung casement, with wooden head and no cill, old; to right, timber fixed light with top-hung vent, plain plastered reveals, no cill, old. One window to first floor, to left, very small timber sliding sash, vertically hung, 1 over 1, with horns, tucked up into eaves, no cill, original.

West gable of no.1: eaves flush with wall; wall rendered, some cracked and some missing at left hand corner where rubble stones revealed; two windows to first floor, timber sliding sash, vertically hung, with horns, 2 over 2, with horizontal divisions; wooden heads plastered over; no cills. Next to gable at right hand side, a square pier, cement rendered, with concrete slab on top; modern gate mounted on adjacent circular pier of harled rubble with conical cap on slate cornice. Opposite this gateway, on other side of lane, a matching pair of piers, but conical cap of circular one has cement rendered finish. Approach lane has limestone grit surface with hedges each side and some stone revetments. Rubble stone walling, whitened, links gateway opposite to white-painted rubble stone fronted shed with corrugated iron roof. Adjacent to the shed are a series of strip gardens facing the houses, bounded by low rubble stone walls to the front.

SETTING: The cottages stand in an isolated and remote position in open countryside along a lane and not visible from main roads, with a distant view to the sea.

Historical information

Originally built as accommodation for waiters, the equivalent of the coastguard in the 18th century, whose duty was to wait and watch for smugglers. Asbestos roofs were put on some of the cottages by the present owner’s father during the 1930s; prior to that they were thatched. Nos. 5 and 6 were previously one house. The cottages numbered 1-6 appear on the OS map of 1831, with no. 7, at the extreme east end, appearing on the OS map of 1858.

References - Primary

1. OS Map 1831, Co Antrim 47.
2. OS Map 1858, Co Antrim 47.
3. Information from owner in 1997.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

A terrace of houses of some quaint charm and vernacular appeal forming a picturesque group but spoiled in detail by inappropriate replacement materials, with evident modernisation to some interiors having taken place over the past two years.