Church of the Holy Family (RC)

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Simple, two storey ‘Irish gothic’ RC parish church of c.1900 in rubble with rendered dressings. The church is set on a wedge of ground between the Drumconagher and Annacloy Roads, roughly 4 miles NW of Downpatrick.

The front (gable) façade faces E. To the centre at ground floor level is the main entrance. This consists of a timber sheeted double door set within a rendered opening with grip moulding, which in turn sits with a small gabled bay with side buttresses and coping to gable with cross finial. Splayed steps to doorway.

To the left and right of the entrance bay are small roundel windows with trefoil tracery. Above the bay is a grouping of three tall pointed arch windows, with that to centre tallest. These rest on a moulded sill course. Above these is a tiny pointed arch opening with louvers. The façade has stepped buttresses and is topped with a gabled bellcote with cross finial.

The S façade of the nave has a series of stepped buttresses, as front. Between these are five pairs of tall pointed arch windows. The S façade of the nave has a similar arrangement, but wit a shallow flat topped bay under the central pair of windows.

The rear gable is dominated by a large gabled chancel bay with a group of three pointed arch windows, buttresses, coping and finial, all as front. To the N side of the chancel there is a small gabled vestry projection, with double sash window to N gable, timber sheeted flat arch door to the shorter E face and a smaller sash window to the W face. A chimney stack with a splayed base rises from the W side of the vestry roof.

The whole façade is in coursed rock-faced dark fieldstone rubble with rendered dressings to openings and as copings and courses whole building rests on a bevelled base and has a moulded eaves course. All sections of the roof are gabled and slated. Red clay ridge tiles. Cast iron rw goods.

Small graveyard to W of church and newly built one and a half storey house to NW. The churchyard is enclosed by a low rubble wall, with decorative wrought iron gates to front (E) along with matching wrought iron railings. The gate has square rubble pillars with rendered, multi-sided ‘pyramidal’ caps.

Historical information

This church was built in 1899.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI OS/6/3/30/3 OS map, Down sh 30, c.1901
2 PRONI OS/6/3/30/4 OS map, Down sh 30, 1921

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance

Evaluation

Simple, two storey ‘Irish gothic’ RC parish church of c.1900 in rubble with rendered dressings. Well proportioned and consistent of detail inside and out it well sited and contributes to its surroundings. It is of local historic interest as an example of the type and of social importaince for its historic role in the community.