8 Ballynafoy Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Detached asymmetrical four-bay two-storey lime-rendered house, built c.1800, raised and remodelled c.1850. Rectangular on plan, facing east with gabled-ended single-storey rear return and range of single-storey outbuildings abutting the south gable end. Located to the south of Ballynafoy Road, with a front paved yard, enclosed lawns within the grounds of a modern dwelling to the east, built c.1980.

Pitched natural slate roof with black clay ridge tiles, the slates being smaller to the left bay. Two rendered profiled chimneystacks and replacement plastic rainwater goods. Painted lime-render over rubblestone walling with rough-hewn squared granite quoins to the north gable only. Square-headed window openings with granite sills, exposed sash boxes and early timber sash windows; 6/3 to the first floor, 6/6 to the ground floor.

Front east elevation is four windows wide with an off-centre square-headed front entrance having replacement timber glazed door and sidelights with granite sills. Further square-headed door opening to the left with replacement vertically-sheeted timber half-door and rectangular overlight.

Gabled south side elevation abutted by linear range of single-storey rendered outbuildings.

Rear elevation has randomly placed window openings and is abutted by a gable-ended single-storey rendered return. Various timber sash windows including 4/4, 2/2 and 6/6, all having exposed sash boxes. Pitched natural slate roof to the rear return with a single cement rendered redbrick chimneystack and largely steel casement windows, including a single 2/2 timber sash window to the north elevation and a timber sheeted door to the south elevation.

Gabled north side elevation with chimney rising from gable and a single off-centre window opening at each level, as per front elevation.

Setting

Located on the south side of Ballynafoy Road with its north gable facing the road set in manicured gardens enclosed by rendered walls to the road and accessed via concrete paved drive. The drive opens into a concrete paved front yard enclosed by single-storey range of rendered outbuildings, built c.1900, with pebbledash rendered walls, pitched natural slate roof and vertically-sheeted timber half-doors. House forms part of a modern dwelling to the east, built c.1990.

Roof: Natural slate
Walling: Lime render
Windows: Timber
RWG: Plastic

Historical information

The house in its current form dates from the mid-nineteenth century but has been built up around an earlier single-storey core, demonstrating a progression from a vernacular structure to a more substantial farmhouse with some formalised features.

A rectangular structure is shown on the first edition OS map of 1833. The Townland Valuation (1828-40) suggests that this was initially a single-storey vernacular dwelling with attached outbuildings, all thatched. The occupier was William Chambers and dimensions are given for the house and three outbuildings. By the time of Griffith’s Valuation (1856-64) the house has been raised to two storeys and has acquired a single-storey return. The house is slated but all the outbuildings are thatched, apart from a single wooden structure. The house and outbuildings are now valued at £8 and John Chambers leases the house and 15 acres of land from William Waugh and then James C Stuart (1872). Annual Revisions of the mid-1860s note that John Chambers had a considerable interest in the farm ‘having built the house which is a very good one’. The rent paid by Chambers was £27.10s.

John Chambers died on 11th February 1874 and left his assets including farms in Derrylough and Bellievey, to his daughter Anne Eliza who was the wife of a Presbyterian minister, Rev Matthew Macauley, and to his grandson John Henry Chambers Macauley. Rev Matthew Macauley from Rathfriland was minister at McKelvey’s Grove in Monaghan, Newtownards and Brockley in London and was related to the English historian Thomas Babington Macauley. When the Rev Macauley retired he became a magistrate in Banbridge. John Chambers’ grandson John Henry Chambers Macaulay was ordained in 1893 and was minister in Dundalk and Blackburn. His brother James Jordan Macauley was also a minister and eventually became Moderator of the General Assembly in 1932. (History of Congregations)

The house passed to Arthur Burns in 1875, William Chambers in 1881 and John White in 1899, the valuation was reduced to £6 the same year. Valuer’s notes give a plan and dimensions for the building at this time. The outbuildings were roofed with felt and the buildings were felt to be ‘old’. The house passed to John Kearney in 1911 but appears to have been vacant at the time of both censuses.

At the time of the First General Revaluation in 19303/4 the accommodation comprised two rooms on the ground floor, a kitchen, scullery and pantry. On the first floor were three bedrooms but there was no bath or electric light at this period and the house lay vacant for a time. From 1941 the house was let out at a rent of 15s per week and the owner supplied free milk to the tenant. The property currently lies vacant, although the outbuildings remain in agricultural use.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/3/34/1 First Edition OS Map 1833
2. PRONI OS/6/3/34/2 Second Edition OS map 1859
3. PRONI OS/6/3/34/3 Third Edition OS Map 1902-3
4. PRONI OS/6/3/34/4 Fourth Edition OS Map 1903-18
5. PRONI VAL/1/B/352 Townland Valuation (1828-40)
6. PRONI VAL/2/B/3/56 Griffiths Valuation (1861)
7. PRONI VAL/12/A/3/2 Valuer’s Notes of 1899
8. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/1A-E Annual Revisions (1864-1929)
9. PRONI VAL/3/C/4/1 First General Revaluation 1933-57
10. PRONI VAL/3/D/4/3/A/2 First General Revaluation 1933-57
11. PRONI Will of John Chambers died 11th February 1874
12. 1901 census online
13. 1911 census online

Secondary Sources

1. “A History of Congregations in the Presbyterian Church in Ireland 1610-1982” authorised by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Belfast: Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland, 1982 (available at www.presbyterianhistoryireland.com)n

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Detached four-bay two-storey lime-rendered house, built c.1800, raised and remodelled c.1850. The original roofing, walling and window materials give the house an early appearance. Much historic fabric and detailing survive and reflect its development form a smaller dwelling. The setting survives, although it is compromised by the adjacent property. This early dwelling constitutes a good example of developed vernacular architecture, demonstrating the progression from a simple single story structure to a more formalised house, and a rare survivor in the locality.