4 Milltown Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A two storey vernacular building set back a little distance from the east side of a minor road off the B30 that leads southwards in the direction of Forkill from the Camlough – Newtownhamilton road about two miles from the former town. The house faces west.

The building is of two storeys with a harled and whitened finish at the front. The rear is of exposed and whitened stone. The roof is covered with natural slate, the chimney is constructed of dark brick with corbelling and the rainwater goods are of plastic. The gables of the house are plain without openings.

The main elevation has a windbreak porch positioned at the right hand extremity that contains a modern timber sheeted half door. The lean-to roof is of natural slate and the rainwater goods are plastic.

To the left of the porch there is a window on both floors. The lower one is vertically sliding with sashes divided in two vertically and with splayed sash stops. Above this a small window is divided into two vertically. Sills are of traditional depth at leading faces.
The building extends to the left in modified two-storey construction. An external staircase rises to a timber-sheeted door that gave access to the original storage chamber and below this at ground level an entrance led to the byre. A quoin stone appears at the north extremity of the original house and a full set remains in the corresponding position on the rear elevation.

Attached to the south gable of the house a single storey unit of concrete block construction with a monopitch corrugated roof is fronted by a façade of harled construction matching the main building. It is made up of a similar windbreak porch with half door and with a vertically sliding window on either side with sashes divided into two vertically and with moulded sash stops.

A further extension is attached to the north gable of the house. The construction is of corrugated sheeting containing steel-framed windows.

The east-facing rear elevation of the main house is pierced by three openings. Starting from the south there is a small plain window at upper level, a plain vertical shaped window at a lower level and a modern top hung window at a high level.

Historical information

The house appears on the first edition of the Ordnance Survey map of 1833-5, including small structures at front and rear. The second edition shows the same structure.

References – Primary sources

1. OS map, 1st edition 1834 – 5, Co Armagh 25
2. OS map, 2nd edition 1860, Co Armagh 25, including small structures at front and rear.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

An early nineteenth century retaining most of the elements that make up the vernacular appearance of the building. Evidence of rough quoin stones built into the walls suggests that the original building was of lesser size. Plan form survives.