House on lane off beach

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Ruinous single storey / three bay vernacular house, remotely located on coastline up a lane adjacent to Duggan's Point to north of Greencastle Point, and only accessed from a coastal lane, along beach, leading from end of Greencastle Pier Road.

Pitched natural slate roof with smooth rendered brick to either gable and on either side of central bays. Cast iron skylight to centre of front pitch. Missing rainwater goods. Walls are harled and washed in pink pigment, no eaves course.

Principal façade faces north. All window cills to façade are concrete. Porch abuts central bay. It has gabled natural slate roof and walls as façade. On its front wall is a sliding sash window (exposed box), but sashes are gone. Right cheek is blank. Left cheek has a doorway (door now without panels). There are two windows to left bay, one to left of porch on central bay, and one to right bay. All are 2/2 vertically divided (most sashes missing).

Left gable is blank.

Rear elevation is harled as façade. All windows have painted granite cills. Its left bay has two window openings, central bay has a door with a window; and right bay has a t+g sheeted door.

Right gable has a single small window at ground floor right and a similar window to either side in gable above.

To rear left and right, enclosing yard are single storey derelict outhouses, of no interest, apart from the remains of a belt driven threshing machine in one of them.

Setting

Lane from left forks to front and rear around the house. To front, across front lane, is a belt of Scots pines sheltering a small orchard. Its gateway from lane is flanked by larches and it retains some elements of decorative planting. Small garden at front of house is overgrown but has a cement edged path and flowerbed. To its right boundary is a high stone wall with a doorway to adjacent field and a stone slab bench.

Historical information

A building is shown at this location on the 1834 OS 6” map. It does not appear on the 1835 valuation suggesting that it was a very modest building. It is described as a one storey dwelling in the 1863 valuation, and was valued at only 15s0d. The valuation revision book entry for 1896 notes it as ‘down’, suggesting that it was either very ruinous or in the process of reconstruction. The present surviving detailing corresponds with this turn of the century construction.

Primary Sources
1. OS 6" map, 1st edition (1834) Co Down sheet 57 (PRONI OS/6/3/57/1)
2. PRONI- VAL 2B/3/81C, p..51 (1863 valuation).
3. PRONI- VAL 12B/19/13C, p.27 (valuation revision).

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

This building, although ruinous, shows an interesting plan form evolution, has an attractive coastal setting, and unusual corner fireplaces.