Manoo

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A one and a half storey, three bay, direct entry thatched house with a harled finish to the front elevation and rendered elsewhere, all whitened.
The house faces south with lawns on either side of a short drive overlooking the Irvinestown/Kesh road just over three miles from the former town.
The thatch covering is contained within parapet gables. Three rows of scollops are exposed at the ridge and one at the eaves. A seamless aluminium gutter on large projecting brackets carries across the rear eaves to protect the kitchen extension below. Each gable rises to a corbelled chimney and another stack serves the living room hearth.
The entrance with a pair of diagonally sheeted stained timber doors under a two pane fanlight is flanked to the left (west) by one and to the right by two top hung casements with stained finishes. There are two similar windows at the rear lighting the living room and the back bedroom. The sills are of traditional depths. There is a small plain window with painted framing in either gable. There are no sills. The framing of the fenestration of the extensions is of a modern stained variety.
A single storey extension with red tiled roof abuts the west gable, there is a lean-to corrugated iron roofed shed on the west gable and a flat concrete roofed kitchen appears at the rear.

Historical information

A building is shown on this site on the OS map of 1834 / 35, but is not noted in the near contemporary valuation. The house appears in a longer form on the revised map of 1859, minus the present end projections. The occupant is recorded in the 1862 valuation as John McGregor, with the Rev. Richard St.George the immediate lessor and the rateable value calculated at £1-15-0.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI VAL/1A/4/5 OS map, County Fermanagh sheet 5, with valuation
references (1834 / 35-c.38)
2 PRONI VAL/2A/4/5B Revised OS map, County Fermanagh sheet 5, with valuation references (1859-c.62)
3 PRONI VAL/2B/4/13A Second valuation, Magheraculmoney (1862)

The interest of the house was re-assessed in 1995 and it was considered that despite the extensions that it would meet the listing criteria. This view was influenced by the dwindling number of thatched buildings.
Garnet Mills was of the opinion that the extensions did not detract significantly from the appearance of the house.
The Historic Buildings Council endorsed a recommendation for listing at the meeting held on 6 October 1995.
The rear slope of the house was re-thatched by Frank Gilligan using straw in 1997. Repair was carried out on the front slope at that time and also in 2000.
The front of the house was re-thatched in 2001 by Frank Gilligan using straw and the rear covering was repaired at the junction with the chimneys.

References – Primary Sources

1. OS map, 1st edition 1834, Co. Fermanagh sheet 5. The house appears together with three outbuildings. The entrance way from the south side has not been formed.
2. OS map, 1st revision 1856, Co. Fermanagh sheet 5. There is no change on this map.

Secondary Sources

Report by Garnet Mills to EHS 24 July 1995
Report by Colin Hatrick to EHS 17 August 2000
Report by Colin Hatrick to EHS 16 September 2000

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

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Z. Rarity
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A one and a halF storey, three bay, direct entry thatched house with a harled or rendered external finish. A number of alterations have occurred but the basic internal layout is still discernible and some of the detail has been retained. The replacement windows at the front occupy the earlier openings. The importance of the retention of the thatched roof in traditional form with unaltered timberwork is of paramount interest.