Drumgiven House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Two storey gabled farm house of perhaps c.1855 which may represent the raising in height of a pre 1834 dwelling. The building is set on the E side of Cahard Road roughly 2.5 miles E of Ballynahinch.

The front (W) façade is asymmetrical. To the right of centre is a flat modern panel timber door with modern style plain sidelights and an elliptical fanlight with ‘radial’ tracery (which is also modern). To the far left is a sash window with Georgian panes (6/6), with another to the far right and three more to the first floor (in line with ground floor openings).

The N gable has a sash window to right on ground and first floor (both 2/2). To the S gable there is a small window to right on the ground floor. To the right this gable merges with the S face of the single storey rear return. This large rubble faced and has two small windows with modern frames. An upper storey is a present being added to the return (though work looks as though it has been suspended) and the S face of the return has been heightened in breeze block.

To the left of the rear elevation extends the return which has a modern window to its N face along with a small projecting porch which contains a timber sheeted ‘stable’ door. The N face of the return is also in the process of being heightened. To the rear façade of the main house there is a window to both floors, that to the ground floor with a margin paned sash frame, with a modern frame to that to the first floor. To the right of the ground floor window a small lean-to bird house projection has been added.

The front façade is finished in rusticated render at ground floor level and lined render at first floor level. In-out quoins to front. The gables are finished in lined render. The rear is finished in rough cast but is largely covered in creeping plant growth. The return is in lined render to N and in unfinished rubble to S. The gabled roof is slated and has three rendered chimney stacks. Cast iron and PVC rw goods.

Large collection of outbuildings to N and E (rear). The outbuildings to the rear are in the process of being heightened and linked to the new first floor of the return, however the building work on all of this appears to have been suspended. Low painted brick wall to front with simple square piers enclosing a garden from the adjacent road.

Historical information

A building is shown on this site on the OS map of 1834, which the contemporary first valuation book states was single-storey and belonged to a Robert Carlisle. On the revised map of 1859 a house of L-shaped plan similar to that of the present dwelling is depicted. The second valuation of 1861 records this as a two-storey slated dwelling leased by Robert Carlisle from the Crawford (Rademon) estate, with the property valued for rateable purposes at £8-10-0. It is likely that this is substantially the same house we see today. The asymmetry of the frontage and the small, widely spaced fenestration strongly indicates, however, that the current structure may represent a heightening of the 1830s house, rather than an entirely new building. It is uncertain when this building work may have taken place, perhaps c.1840.

A rise in the valuation to £10 in 1873 could be an indication of an upgrade to the property at this point. It is possible that this may be a reference to the outbuildings, which appear to be more extensive on the 1902 OS map than on that of 1859.

The Carlisle family appear to have remained in possession of the property until at least 1972. In the later 1970s (at least) it appears to have belonged to a family called Newham, and would seem to have changed ownership on several occasions since then.

Townland Drumgiven – Ir. Droim Geimhin ‘fort of the hide’

References- Primary sources
1 OS maps 6inch County series, Down sheet 23 – 1834, 1859, 1920-21
2 PRONI VAL1B/330 First valuation, Kilmore parish - c.1838
3 PRONI VAL2B/3/28A Second valuation, Kilmore parish - 1861
4 PRONI VAL12B/18/18A-E Annual valuation revision books, Kilmore ED – 1866-1930
5 PRONI VAL12B/18/19E Annual valuation revision book, Leggygowan ED – 1907-29
6 PRONI VAL3C/4/15 First general revaluation of Northern Ireland, Leggygowan ED - 1936-57
7 PRONI VAL4B/3/40 Second general revaluation of Northern Ireland, Leggygowan ED - 1956-72
8 ‘Belfast Telegraph’ - 7 April 1979, p.5

Secondary sources
9 Placenamesni website - https://www.placenamesni.org/resultdetails.php?entry=12461

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Discussed 09-06-2025 Pres AM, AML PS, TC & CM. It was decided that since it was originally looked at in 2004/5 and had not been signed off as a listing at the time, that in its current state it has lost too much of it's original fabric to warrant listing. It was decided that it should be Record Only. AML (SPTO) 23/06/25