Farmhouse

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Two storey / two bay vernacular farmhouse aligned down hill slope on the E side of the Rostrevor Road. Abutted on west gable by two-storey outbuilding.

Pitched natural slate roof (cemented in place ) aligned W-E. It has terracotta ridge tiles and brick skews to left gable. There is a cast iron roof light to rear pitch. There are two red brick chimneys, one to each gable. The right gable has been raised (to accommodate an abutting outbuilding) and the chimney has been raised with it. Walls are wet dashed granite rubble with an advanced eaves course.

Front elevation faces N, its left bay is set lower in hill than the right one. Main entrance is set within a modern boxed porch to left side of right bay. It has a flat concrete roof and rendered concrete block walls. Its front wall has a three paned steel casement window, its left has a small timber casement window (re-used from elsewhere) and its right has a t &g sheeted door.

To right of porch is a one 1/1 sliding sash window with horns. The left bay has two windows; that to left is infilled and the other is a 2/6 sliding sash with horns and exposed box. All windows have roughly dressed granite cills.

At first floor on left bay are two very small 1/1 sliding sashes with horns and exposed boxes in line the ground floor window openings. A window on opening on right bay contains a two paned casement

Left gable is blank and abutted by a single storey / two bay outbuilding with pitched natural slate roof, and walls as main block. It has two doorways to front yard. Its left gable and rear elevation are blank.

Rear elevation of house has two steel casement windows to ground floor (lighting kitchen). First floor blank.

The right gable of house is abutted by a two storey / single bay outbuilding. The outbuilding has a pitched natural slate roof and walls as main house. Rising from right to left on north elevation is a flight of granite steps which lead to a t +g sheeted door at first floor. At ground floor, to left of steps, is a modern doorway.

Its exposed left gable is blank. Its rear wall has a set of granite steps leading to a sheeted metal door at first floor. The right gable is blank and abutted by a modern single storey shed with a lean-to corrugated metal roof (sloping to rear). Walls are painted concrete blockwork with metal sliding door to front elevation.

Setting:
There is a front yard to house accessed by modern gates from the road. Yard has a roughly built modern shed in the NW corner.

Historical information

A slightly smaller building is shown on this site on the first edition OS map of 1834, but this is not recorded in the contemporary valuation. A house matching the size of the present property is shown on the revised OS map of 1859 and recorded in the valuation of 1861 as the home of a Michael Branagan, with the Marquis of Downshire as the lessor, and a rateable value of £1-5-0.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI VAL/1A/3/52 OS map, County Down sheet 52, with valuation
references, (1834-c.38)
2 PRONI VAL/2A/3/52 Revised OS map, County Down sheet 52, with valuation references, (1859-c.61)
3 PRONI VAL/2B/3/49C Second valuation, Clonduff (1861-63)

House shown at this location in 1834 OS 6” map.

Primary Sources:
1. 1st edition OS map 1834 (Down sheet 52).

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

An interesting vernacular grouping of a mountain farm stepping down the hill slope.