East Tyrone College of Further Education

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Description at 03.01.2007: The buildings described below were demolished and replaced with a new school on the same site.

Description at 13.12.2001: Large, sprawling modern style three, two and single storey further education college built mainly in the mid 1960s and the 1970s, but incorporating a compact two and a half storey brick-built rectory house of 1879 with French style mansard roof and half-dormers. The whole ensemble is set on sloping ground to the E side of Circular Road, to the N of Dungannon town centre.

[The front (Circular Road) elevation actually faces NW, but for the purposes of this description NW will be referred to as W.] In plan form the complex almost defies description. To the NW corner is the original rectory house (now college offices). Extending from the S of this is a small single storey modern style flat roofed entrance section, which, to the S again, links to a taller single storey gymnasium section with a shallow-pitched gabled roof, which in turn merges with a slightly lower flat-roofed portion to SE and SW. To the E the entrance section merges with a large three storey flat-roofed class room block, to the E end of which is a N-S range of linked buildings consisting of a single storey block to N with northlights and a long flat-roofed single storey block to S. To the E of these there is a small single storey flat-roofed section with a longer flat roofed single storey section lying adjacent to it (in a N-S orientation). To the SE of this, where the ground level drops significantly, there is a large two storey free-standing flat-roofed block of irregular shape. Interspersed to the N and S sides of this complex are various single storey buildings (containing further classrooms), mainly large pre-fabricated structures, and to the NE corner of the site is a small single storey house of c.1920s-30s with a rough cast façade and half-hipped asbestos tile roof.

The original former rectory house to the NW corner of the site is roughly square in plan, brick-built with stone [?sandstone] in-out quoins, courses and window dressings, a slated mansard roof with curved roof half-dormers. The flat arch windows have uniform mullion and transom frames, (which are 20th century replacements), and there are four centrally located stone and render chimneystacks.

The former rectory appears to have originally entered from the S but the ground floor of this elevation is now largely covered by the mid 1960s modern style entrance section. A small section of the left hand side of the ground floor level is still exposed; it is plain rendered (unlike much of the rest of the building) with a window with a frame as described above, but without dressings. To the first floor of this elevation there are three slightly larger evenly spaced windows (with dressings and frames as described above), all resting on a stone cill course with a similar string course close to window header level. The S elevation repeats the first floor arrangement of that to S to both floors, but with a string course between both floors and not to ground floor.

The N elevation has a relatively shallow (almost) full width two level flat-roofed projection. To the right hand (W) edge of this projection there extends a tall sandstone wall which stretches to some outbuildings further to the N (see below). This wall has a large segmental headed vehicle arch flanked by square piers and topped by a gable. The whole wall and gateway is stone coped. To the ground floor of the of the N face of the shallow projection there are three small sash windows (with security bars over). Between the second and third window is a doorway with modern door with glazed panel. To the first floor of the projection there are three undressed windows with recent casement frames; the centre window is larger and cuts through a broad string course. The ground floor level of this face is rendered. The short W face of the projection there is a window as main W elevation, but considerably smaller. To the first floor there is a small date stone (‘1879’). To the E face there is a window to the ground floor, much as that to W face, with a similar smaller window to the first floor. The projection is topped with a stone cornice and parapet.

The E elevation is as that to W. The S side of the roof there are three evenly spaced dormers all with casement windows and a gabled roof (as opposed to curved) to that to the centre. To both the E and W sides of the roof there are two dormers each. The roof has a slight overhang with dentilled eaves course.

The component parts of the complex outside of the former rectory house are all plain modern style mid 1960s buildings mainly in brown-ish brick with rows / banks of large windows. One of the single storey sections to the S has a wood-clad façade. The large, irregular plan, free standing block to the far east is slightly later than its neighbours, dating from 1975, but is in much the same style.

The two storey gabled outbuilding block to the N of the former rectory in snecked sandstone rubble and has a lean-to section to its W gable. To the S elevation there are three large vehicle doorways, two with segmental arch heads one with flat arch and all with timber sheeted doors / boarding. To the first floor there is a small sash window to left and a loft door to centre. To the ground floor of the N elevation all openings have been blocked up in a mixture of concrete block and stone. To first floor there is a loft doorway and four slit openings. This side of the building backs on to a roadway which slopes from W to E, judging from the way in which the road cuts across the façade the ground level to this side would away to have been considerably lower. The gabled roof of the outbuilding is slated.

Historical information

The original section of this complex was built in 1879 as a church of Ireland rectory, with Rev. Lewis Richards its first incumbent. The building continued to serve as a rectory until the early 1960s, when the house (along with its grounds and farm land to the east side) was acquired by the local technical institute as the grounds for its new college. The present complex was largely built in c.1965 and further extended in c.1975. The old rectory house was integrated with the new buildings and remains in use as an office block.

The former rectory and mid-twentielh century school was demolished c2002 and a new school built on the same site.

References- Primary sources
1 Belfast and Province of Ulster directory 1880- (Belfast, 1880, )
2 PRONI VAL/12E/185/1/1-3 Valuation town plans of Dungannon, 1875-1909
3 PRONI VAL/12B/38/17d-n Annual valuation revision notebooks, Donaghmore and Drumglass parishes etc., 1879-1929
4 PRONI OS/8/34/2/1-3 OS town plans of Dungannon, 1906-7 [Two of these maps are currently missing.]
5 PRONI OS/6/6/54/4 OS map, Co Tyrone sh 54, 1935 [PRONI does not hold the c.1901 edition.]
6 PRONI VAL/12E/185/2/1-3 Valuation town plans of Dungannon, 1910-35
7 PRONI VAL/3G/146/1 Valuation town plans of Dungannon, 1931-38
8 PRONI VAL/3G/146/2 Valuation town plans of Dungannon, 1938-53
9 Plans of East Tyrone College of Further Education, c.2000 [Supplied by the College.]

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Evaluation at 03.01.2007. Former rectory and mid-twentieth century school demolished c2002.

Evaluation at 13.12.2001. Large, sprawling modern style three, two and single storey further education college built mainly in the mid 1960s and the 1970s, but incorporating a compact two and a half storey brick-built rectory house of 1879 with French style mansard roof and half-dormers. The rectory is of some interest but its layout, detailing and setting have been compromised by the converson to become part of the school.