Loughgall House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A 2-storey 3-bay house with a basement storey and attic storey to the rear. Main entrance faces north.

North elevation: hipped roof of Bangor blue slates in regular courses, with projecting eaves on wide-spaced shaped brackets; four chimneys, of dressed stone on roughcast bases; cast iron gutter. Walls are rendered, wet dash, with smooth rendered plinth; smooth rendered vertical strip to ground storey at left-hand extremity. Three windows to first floor, rectangular timber sliding sash, 6 over 6, with horns, set in smooth rendered reveals, with projecting painted stone cills, and surmounted by rectangular drip mouldings. Two windows to ground floor, one to each side of central entrance: coupled rectangular timber sliding sashes, sashed as to first floor, but surmounted by small-paned geometrically-patterned fixed top lights, with similar reveals, cills and label mouldings as to first floor. Central entrance comprises an original rectangular timber panelled door set between engaged Ionic columns carrying a panelled frieze with moulded cornice flanked by geometrically glazed sidelights and surmounted by a radially glazed and looped fanlight all contained within an elliptically arched surround; doorway approached by a flight of stone steps.

East elevation: wall rendered as previous except no plinth; pvc downpipe; one window in main block of house, rectangular timber sliding sash, 6 over 6 without horns. Extending to the left and projecting forward is the eastern rear return, 2-storey with roof slated as previous; walling rendered as previous; pvc gutter and downpipe; three windows, rectangular timber sliding sash, 2 over 4 to ground floor, and 3 over 6 to upper floor, all with horns. Extending to the left of that and projecting forward is an extension to the eastern rear return, 2-storey, slated and rendered as previous, with pvc gutter and downpipe; one window to first floor, rectangular timber sashed 6 over 6, with horns; one window to ground floor, modern rectangular fixed light with opening light.

Rear elevation comprises the main block with two projecting rear returns, a short one to the west and a longer one to the east. All roofs slated as previous and walls rendered as previous. Three attic dormers to main block, gabled, containing timber sashed windows, 10 over 10, with horns. Main block between rear returns: 3-storey, with two windows to first floor and two to ground floor, all rectangular timber sliding sash, 6 over 6, without horns; one window to basement, small paned, and one doorway to basement, rectangular, tongued and grooved sheeted timber with small glazed panel. West side of main part of rear return at east end: 3-storey, with one window to each floor: rectangular timber sliding sash to first floor, 6 over 6, without horns; coupled sliding sashes to ground floor, each 3 over 6, with horns; similar windows to basement but 6 over 6, with horns. Extension to east rear return is 2-storey, with one window to upper floor, sashed 3 over 6 without horns, and a garage doorway to basement.
Rear return at west end has a blind east wall. South wall is 3-storey, with one window to each storey: timber sashed, 6 over 6, with horns, to top storey; coupled sashes, 6 over 6, without horns, but with geometrically glazed fixed top lights, to middle storey; rectangular small-paned to basement. West wall contains a projecting conservatory at top level that is at first floor level of the main house, in the angle with the main block of the house, with a rectangular doorway set in the main wall below it, opening onto a small balcony. Conservatory constructed of timber, containing four sashed windows on the longer west side, all 6 over 6, with horns, divided by pilasters, and one on the shorter south side, 8 over 8 with horns; arcaded apron with moulded timber pendants, along both sides; flat soffit on underside, with a circular cast iron corner post resting on balcony. Lean-to roof to conservatory. Balcony comprises a concrete floor slab cantilevered on a chamfered stone pillar, with small-paned timber casement window to base; flight of concrete steps up to balcony, with plain ironwork railings to steps, and hooped railings to balcony. Rear wall of main block of house contains a pair of French doors opening onto balcony, glazed and panelled, with geometrically glazed fanlight.

West elevation: wall rendered as previous, including smooth plinth; one window, to first floor, rectangular timber sliding sash, as previous to first floor of entrance front, including label moulding.

SETTING: The building stands facing the main street, set back slightly from it with a small garden in front, divided into two sections by the front steps. Front boundary formed by hooped railings on stone plinth walls which return at the extremities and at the front steps, with curving corners. To the left at the front is a narrow alleyway with a terrace of houses to the left of that; to the right at the front is a gateway leading to the rear, comprising a pair of square stone piers with swept pyramidal caps, attached to the main house at left by a roughcast screen wall, and containing a pair of original ornamented iron gates. Driveway leads to garden at rear.

Historical information

Precise date of building not recorded but it appears on the OS map of 1833 and stylistically may be dated to c 1830. Occupied from the 1830s by the agents to the Loughgall estate, the occupant in 1837 being recorded as John Hardy who was both agent to the estate and resident magistrate for the village. Bought along with the Manor House estate and the rest of the village in 1947 by the Ministry of Agriculture, and subsequently sold into private ownership in 1975, but without its farm buildings to the rear.

References – Primary Sources
1. OS Map 1834, Co Armagh 8.

Secondary Sources
1. Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland, Vol I: Parishes of County Armagh, 1835-8 (Belfast 1990), pp 77, 79.
2. S. Lewis, A topographical dictionary of Ireland, Vol II (London, 1837), p 313.
3. DOENI, Loughgall: A Conservation Village (Belfast, 1993), p 28.
4. P. Reilly, Loughgall: a Plantation parish (Armagh, 1995), p 33.
5. C.E.B. Brett, Buildings of County Armagh (Belfast, 1999), p 185.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
I. Quality and survival of Interior
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

This is an early 19th century late Georgian house which retains most of its original features including a fine columned doorcase and unusual window detailing, and forms an attractive feature in the main street of the village.