St Joseph's RC Church

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Early 19thC barn church set in small churchyard on E side of Sheeptown Road.

Pitched natural slate roof is aligned NE-SW. It has overhanging eaves and half round metal rainwater goods. Gables have moulded kneelers and painted moulded concrete skews carrying cross finials. Walls are dashed and painted with smooth rendered basecourse.

Principal elevation faces NW and runs parallel to the Sheeptown Road and is abutted to centre by an entrance porch. Porch walls and roof (its ridge meets the eaves of the church) are detailed as church. The NW gable of the porch has a Gothic headed doorway with painted V-channelled quoins containing a pair of modern diagonally sheeted doors with decorative iron strap-hinges and door pull. Mounted over is a modern light fitting. The left and right cheeks each have a 1/1 sash window in a chamfered architrave.

The façade has two tall Gothic windows on either side of the porch. All are modern Y-tracery windows with painted cills. All windows to main church are detailed as these.

The right (SW) gable of the church has a large central Gothic-headed window of intersecting tracery. To its left is a Gothic-headed doorway with painted architrave containing a diagonal t+g sheeted door with decorative strap hinges and door pull.

The rear (SE) elevation has three equally spaced windows (as those on façade).

The left (NE) gable is blank and almost completely abutted by a lower sacristy. Its roof and walls are detailed as the church but without cross finials. The gable end has a pair of tripartite windows (centre one larger). All are modern stained timber 1/1 sliding sashes with painted chamfered architraves and cills. Left cheek of sacristy is abutted by a lower flat roof porch (see later), exposed section is blank. Right cheek of vestry contains a small 1/1 sash window.

The porch is detailed as the sacristy. The front face has a chamfered doorway set to the left of centre with a modern glazed timber door. The left cheek is blank. The right cheek contains a small 1/1 window; a timber louvred vent fills the top sash.

Setting:

Church is set within a small churchyard and is enclosed by a painted cement rendered wall with pitched concrete coping. Two gate piers with pyramidal copings carry a pair of modern metal gates. Churchyard contains numerous memorials, occasional 19thC slate ones, the majority are 20thC date.

Historical information

According to the 1836 OS Memoir, this chapel was erected in 1803 by Rev Dr Lennan at a cost of £600. It goes on to note it as being built of granite and with roughcast, all measuring 70ft long and 34ft broad and capable of accommodating 650 persons. Cited on the 1834 OS 6" map as 'R.C. Chapel'. A national school is also captioned on the 1860 map. The 1836 Valuation book gives its dimensions as 74ft x 28ft x 17ft.

Primary sources:
1. Ordnance Survey Memoir, Newry Parish, 1836
2. OS 6" map, 1834, Co Down sheet 47 (PRONI OS 6/3/47/1).
3. First valuation book, 1836 (PRONI VAL 1B/389, p.298).
4. OS 6" map, 1860, Co Down sheet 47 (PRONI OS 6/3/47/2).
5. Information from Fr Brennan PP.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

This small country church retains few original features and is of little architectural or historic interest.