51 Ballymongan Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

The building, that faces east, is approached by a short lane north-west of the road from Killeter to terminate at Meenafergus close to the border with the Republic of Ireland. The dwelling is seen to the right slightly below road level about three miles south-west of Killeter.

This is a single storey, three structural bay direct entry house with whitened roughly plastered stone walls over layers of cow dung. The base of the walls has a black painted plinth.
The central section of the present house is thatched between parapet gables and cement fillets. The timber sheeted entrance half door is protected by a windbreak porch over which the thatched covering takes up similar form. The porch is flanked on either side by a vertically sliding window with plain sashes and curved sash stops. The sill of the opening on the right (north) is of traditional depth and that on the left (south) is narrow.

The outbuilding that has been incorporated on the south side has been roofed with stonewold slates terminating in a concrete parapet, gutters are of seamless aluminium and downpipes are plastic. There are two windows at the front. That towards the thatched section of the house is small in size and that towards the left (south) of the elevation is larger than those lighting the central section of the house. Sashes are plain, sash stops are curved and the sills are narrow. An identical arrangement of fenestration has been provided at the rear of this section.

A single window lighting the kitchen to the north of the outshot, it is of the casement variety made up of three horizontal panes.
To the right (north) of the thatched part the fuel store is roofed with corrugated iron, the gutter is of seamless aluminium at the front and of pressed metal at the rear. The door is of timber plank construction. Downpipes are of plastic.

Opposite the house on the east the outbuildings in two roof levels are of whitened stone with corrugated iron coverings. Doors are of timber planks, one of the stable type.

Historical information

A building matching the present is shown on the OS map of 1833 / 34 and all others thereafter. Unfortunately this building is not recorded in the first valuation of c.1834, and, as the reference map to accompany the second valuation of c.1858 -which also contains the
references for the post c.1863 annual valuation revisions- is missing from PRONI, we cannot access its later 19th century valuation details.

By 1992, when listed, this building’s condition had deteriorated and a scheme by Gerry Agnew for re-thatching, strengthening the roof timbers, repairing the chimneys and the stonework was completed in 1994. Further re-thatching was carried out by Gerry Agnew in 1999.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI VAL/1A/6/23 OS map, County Tyrone sheet 23, with valuation references, (1833 / 34-c.38)
2 PRONI OS/6/6/23/2 Revised OS map, County Tyrone sheet 14, (1858 / 59)

Other references
1 EHS files

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
F. Structural System
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
Z. Rarity

Evaluation

A single storey 3 structural bay thatched house with whitened walls.The historic layout remains unchanged and modifications to the windows have not affected the appearance adversely. The fireplace has been changed but the rare double bed unit has been retained. The bedroom and bathroom have been integrated successfully within the former outbuilding. Of special interest as a rare survivor of a once common type.