Former Governor’s House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

An attached three-bay three-storey-over-raised-basement former gaol governor’s house, built c.1823 to a design by John Hargrave, located at west of Castle Place. Octagonal on plan, facing north; single-bay two-storey return to south.

Roof is replacement flat concrete, pitched artificial slate to return with dressed sandstone chimneystack to gable. Walling is coursed dressed and squared sandstone over splayed plinth, moulded stone cornice; projecting stone balcony with simple wrought-iron railings. Windows are square-headed replacement painted timber casements with sandstone sills and reveals, except for replacement 1/1 sashes at second floor and where otherwise stated.

Principal (north) elevation is symmetrical; single original 6/4 sash window at second floor level; square-headed replacement timber and glazed door to centre accessed by flight of sandstone steps, dressed limestone lintel and jambs with square-headed plate-glass overlight with sandstone jambs and lintel over.

East elevation is symmetrical; first floor has full-height windows (that to centre serves as glazed door onto balcony), ground floor has original 8/8 sashes.

Rear (south) elevation is abutted by return to left end. Exposed section second floor has replacement casement window to centre and one to ground floor left end. Return is abutted by single-storey ruinous former house (of no interest). Exposed section is blank with chimneybreast to centre; left cheek has a single replacement casement window to each floor; right cheek has single original 8/8 sash window at first floor and arcaded ground floor of two round arches over replacement timber door to left and casement window to right, both with cement rendered tympanums.

West elevation is detailed as east; ground floor has replacement casement; basement level is exposed with three square-headed entrance openings (door not visible) to each canted side.

Setting

The house is at the centre of the former gaol complex, which is at the west of Castle Place on an elevated site visible from the south on Abbey Street; it is located northeast from the former gaol gatehouse (HB11/09/004B-C) and west of the former gaol’s treadwheel building (HB11/09/004D). Remains of various gaol structures remain as housing to the south and east (HB11/09/004E-F) while the former prison cells, which were laid out on a half-octagonal plan, were to the west but have been entirely demolished apart from some surviving four-metre-high boundary wall features.

The house is abutted by an open single-storey wall-enclosed area, the wall is detailed as house with saddleback coping, north elevation is blank with left (east) cheek opened with two round arch-headed arcaded entrances (that to left accessing ascending front stairs, that right accessing descending stairs), right (west) cheek has one square-headed entrance opening to left, area-side lintel has painted lettering: “CRIMINAL WARD,” accessing area with basement sunken channel.

Roof: Replacement flat concrete
Walling: Sandstone
Windows: Timber
RWG: Cast iron

Historical information

The building is shown on the first edition OS map of 1833. The Griffith’s town plan captions the building ‘Governor’s House’. The OS Map of 1905-6 captions the Gaol site as ‘disused’.

Griffith’s Valuation records the property as a whole as ‘County Gaol and yards’, the building valuation is £250.

Lt. William Lacey’s OS Memoirs of 1834 describe the Gaol as follows; ‘…it consists of the old and new gaols. The former was built in 1796…and is now used as the women’s and debtor’s prison. The new part was erected in 1823 of cut freestone in a semi circular form, divided into [?] wards, each having a separate yard for the different classes of prisoner. Both old and new gaols are three storeys high. In front of the old building an open space has lately been enclosed for the prisoners to work in and the whole building is surrounded with a high stone wall to prevent their escape. This establishment can accommodate 300 prisoners and is guarded by 14 keepers. The governor’s house stands in the centre of the arc formed by the new gaol and looks into each yard. (pg 104,105). The Dictionary of Irish Architects lists John Hargrave as the architect of the new gaol and this connects it to the Courthouse (HB11/13/001) built 1814-20, also by Hargrave.

Samuel Lewis Topographical Dictionary of Ireland claims the ‘...county prison, [was] built in 1804 and enlarged in 1822, according to a plan adapted to the better classification of prisoners. (pg, 449).

Around that era theories were developed on the need for improved layouts of such institutions, in particular Jeremy Bentham’s article on ‘Panopticon’ written in 1787, which detailed how design could improve the running of such facilities, this was later to inspire Foucault’s work. The ideas expresses clearly influenced the layout of Omagh Gaol.
The following is an extract from ‘Panopticon’, the ideas expressed bear a strong similarity with the layout of Omagh Gaol;
“The building is circular. The apartments of the prisoners occupy the circumference. You may call them, if you please, the cells. These cells are divided from one another, and the prisoners by that means secluded from all communication with each other, by partitions in the form of radii issuing from the circumference towards the centre, and extending as many feet as shall be thought necessary to form the largest dimension of the cell. The apartment of the inspector occupies the centre; you may call it if you please the inspector's lodge. It will be convenient in most, if not in all cases, to have a vacant space or area all round, between such centre and such circumference. You may call it if you please the intermediate or annular area” (Panopticon, 1787)

Omagh Tourist Information Centre gives the following information; Omagh Gaol was originally located on the site of the present Assize Court House (HB11/13/001). The later goal complex of buildings on the present site, were begun in the 1790’s and opened in 1804 with the Gaol Governors’ house being built in 1823. The gaol closed in 1904. (Omagh Tourist Information Centre).

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/6/35/1-First Edition OS Map (1833)
2. PRONI OS/6/6/35/2-Second Edition OS Map (1854)
3. PRONI OS/6/6/35/3-Third Edition OS Map (1905-6)
4. PRONI VAL/12/B/6/36 A-M–Valuation Revisions (1860-1929)
5. PRONI VAL/12/B/41/37A-G-Valuation Revisions (1903-1929)
6. PRONI VAL/12/E/186/1/5 –Town Plan of Omagh (1882-1909)
7. PRONI VAL/12/F/7/7/1- Valuation Revisions (1930-35)
8. PRONI OS Memoirs. Vol.5 1834.

Secondary Sources

1. Omagh Tourist Information Centre
2. Lewis, Samuel. A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland. Vol.2 (1842)
3. Dictionary of Irish Architects, www.dia.ie

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

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

Evaluation

An attached three-bay three-storey-over-raised-basement Georgian former gaol governor’s house, built c.1823 to a design by John Hargrave, the same architect responsible for the Assize Court House (HB11/13/001). The house has several features of note. In particular, it was built in the centre of a large prison complex that was designed on the Panopticon model and it is octagonal on plan with a wrap-around first floor balcony for the governor to use while inspecting his gaol. Although much of the complex has been demolished since its closure in 1904, this house forms part of a distinct group with some other fine extant structures, including the gatehouse (HB11/09/004B-C) and tread-wheel (HB11/09/004D). The ashlar stonework and the wrought-iron supported balcony both exhibit fine craftsmanship. The plan, proportions and ornamentation of the house within the gaol, with its attached screen walls, demonstrate the intentions of the architect to create a functional piece of architecture in a complex manifesting the ideals of order and control.

General comments

This record has been renumbered as part of a group - previously HB11/09/004