St John’s Church of Ireland Church

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A cruciform church in Gothic Revival style with a square tower and broach spire in the angle between chancel and one transept, built of greystone with sandstone dressings. Main entrance faces west in ecclesiastical west front.

West front symmetrical, comprises west gable with one lancet window to each side of a centrally placed lower gabled west porch. Walls of gable snecked greystone with sandstone ashlar dressings; weathered sandstone copings to gable; rising from shaped kneelers; small square sandstone chimney to apex; weathered buttresses to extremities. Projecting moulded weathering to plinth and projecting string course at cill level. Windows simple Gothic arched lancets with chamfered reveals and cill; projecting label moulding terminating in moulded mask-like stops; fixed glazing of small quarries in lozenge pattern cast iron tracery. Porch gabled, of similar walling but no string course to front face; weathered buttresses to extremities; central doorway, very tall Gothic-arched with moulded chamfered reveals, projecting drip moulding and label stops as to windows in west gable of church; two-leaf doors, Gothic-panelled, new replacements probably approximately to original pattern. Above main doorway is a cusped lozenge-shaped panel inscribed ‘Erected by David S. Kerr Esq AD 1847’ with a projecting drip moulding and mask-like label stops. Sandstone flags to broad and deep doorstep with original ironwork bootscraper to each side. North side of porch contains a tall Gothic-arched doorway detailed as main doorway but arch and drip moulding runs into main gable to left, without mask-like stop. Sandstone of reveals badly weathered, much crumbled, with some smooth cement render repairs. Two leaf doors, Gothic-panelled, original, with original Gothic Revival doorlatch; modern handle. Sandstone flagged doorstep with one original ironwork bootscraper to left-hand side. Moulded sandstone frieze at kneeler level, with moulded cast iron gutter above; new cast iron downpipe in angle with west gable. Roof of porch slated, Bangor Blues in regular courses; black tiled ridge. South side of porch similar to north but contains small window instead of doorway: shouldered head to lancet, with chamfered reveals; fixed glazing of small quarries in lozenge pattern of cast iron tracery, projecting moulded string course at cill level; moulded cast iron gutter and new downpipe in angle with west gable.

North elevation comprises a four-bay nave to the right of a projecting transept gable, and a square tower and spire to the left of the gable. Walls of nave and transept as at west front, with projecting string course at cill level; buttresses to extremities of transept gable and marking bays of nave. Roofs slated as previous, new moulded cast iron gutters and downpipes. Windows in nave and side of transept coupled, glazed as previous, with mask-like label stops; windows in gable at transept arranged in a triplet with centre lancet taller; some spalling to reveals of coupled windows. Lozenge-shaped cusped panel in transept gable above windows; moulded apex to gable coping. Tower has coupled windows to ground floor, glazed as previous, except left-hand lancet has later replacement glazing of translucent glass with aluminium horizontal glazing bars, inappropriate.

Tall upper stage to tower with triplet of window openings detailed as previous to transept gable; contains louvres; projecting cill between shallow clasping buttresses to extremities; circular recessed panel in lozenge-shaped surround in wall below louvres; projecting moulded cornice to top of tower with mask-head corbel course; swept octagonal broach spire of ashlar sandstone surmounting tower.

At base of tower, ground open to form lightwell with iron bar grille closing it; contains iron ladder descending to rectangular ledged timber door to basement of tower.

East elevation comprises projecting gable flanked to left by side of south transept and to right by rear of tower. East gable has five Gothic-arched lancets arranged in ascending fashion toward centre, glazed and detailed as previous, with mask-head stops to extremities of continuous label. One small narrow window with shouldered head, as previous to side of front porch, to each side of main windows. PVC soil pipe to left-hand extremity of east gable. Gable surmounted by an octagonal turret corbelled out from main plane; miniature swept spire in sandstone to turret.

East face of tower and spire similar to north face except ground storey has projecting gabled porch between deep buttress to right and chancel wall to left. Porch gable has a Gothic doorway with two-leaf original panelled doors, all detailed as to north side of entrance porch; spalling to sandstone reveal at left-hand side; narrow cusped Gothic sunken panel in gable above doorway. New cast iron rainwater hoppers and downpipes to each side of doorway. Sandstone flagged doorstep. Roof of porch slated as previous, with weathered copings to gable.

Set back to left-hand side of east gable is east side of south transept: blank walling detailed as previous, except for projecting gablet of porch entrance; tall narrow Gothic-arched doorway, with two-leaf original Gothic-panelled doors set in deep sandstone reveal with projecting drip moulding over; label stops in form of carved bull-terrier dogs’ heads; clasping buttress with weatherings to each side of doorway; steeply pitched roof to gable of porch entirely built of weathered ashlar sandstone; unusual feature. Sandstone flags to doorstep. South elevation of church comprises four-bay nave to left of transept gable with side of chancel to right of transept. Nave and transept similar to north elevation. Side of chancel has narrow Gothic doorway with original two-leaf Gothic-panelled doors, all detailed as previous; sandstone doorstep; new moulded cast iron gutter with downpipe to right-hand side. Some spalling to stonework of spire visible on south side where iron dowels have rusted.

Setting: the church stands in its own churchyard, with grassed lawns all round; no graveyard memorial of any special interest or distinction. To the rear of the church sands a single-storey temporary building not visible from entrance front. The churchyard is bordered by mature trees and hedges.

Front boundary wall of basalt rubble with basalt rock copings.

Gateway of two square sandstone piers with stop chamfered corners, flared bases, and moulded caps with weatherings; pair of original cast iron gates with ornamental finials, some damaged or missing. To left of left-hand gate pier a stile constructed of three concrete steps. Abutting front boundary wall to north is basalt rubble boundary wall, with cement copings, to the old Templecorran graveyard.

At south-west corner of boundary, original front boundary wall stops to abut new boundary wall at angle back to meet south boundary hedge, newly constructed of basalt rubble with rock copings but with reticulated pointing and flat edge to line of overhanging copings. Boundary of north side formed by humped basalt rubble and earth, breached near north-east corner to give access to old Templecorran graveyard. Boundary to east similar to north. Boundary to south formed by hedge.

Historical information

Built in 1847 at the expense of David S. Kerr, MP, of Redhall; consecrated 5 October 1854; architect not known. Kerr reserved the south transept for his own family use and ever since then it has been used by succeeding owners of Red Hall. Outside the doorway to the south transept two dogs’ heads were carved at the label stops to represent Kerr’s favourite bull terriers, while below the transept he had a burial vault created to which it is believed access can be gained by removing the door-step. The vault was later taken over for the McAuley family but has not been opened since. Bell in tower cast in London by John Warner & Son in 1867 and is inscribed ‘Templecorran 1867’; original oil lamps in church replaced by electric flood lamps in 1934; new west door fitted in 1993; church re-slated 1994; new electric quartz radiant heaters fitted in 1995.

It stands in the area of a scheduled monument, no. ANT47:10.

References - Primary Sources

1. Belfast News-Letter, 2 and 6 October 1854.

Secondary Sources

1. L. Ewart, Handbook of the United Diocese of Down and Connor and Dromore (Belfast, 1886), pp 97-98.
2. J. Richardson, The Parish of Templecorran and Islandmagee, N.D. [1937], pp 22-23.
3. A. Dowlin, Ballycarry in Olden Days (Belfast, 1963), pp 87-88.
4. P. Larmour, Notes on St John the Evangelist Church of Ireland Church, Ballycarry, compiled and submitted to Historic Buildings Branch, DOENI, in September 1990.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance

Evaluation

This is an Early Victorian church in Gothic Revival style which exhibits the proportions, ornamentation, plan form, spatial organisation and structural forms that are characteristic of the style, and retains almost all its original features both inside and out, although minor alterations detract from its interior appearance. It is enhanced by its attractive setting surrounded by trees and adjoining an older churchyard with picturesque ruins which date from at least the 17th century. Possessing a prominent local landmark in its stone spire it is a building of some local interest as well as being one of social importance.

General comments

Extent of listing increased on 8th October 2001 to include front boundary wall and gateway.