Downpatrick First (Non-Subscribing) Presbyterian Church

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Simple, ‘vernacular’ Non-subscribing Presbyterian church of c. 1711, which began life as T-shaped, assuming its present cruciform plan possibly in the late 18th century, when the small S projection was added. The building is set on a rise on the E side of Stream Street, surrounded by a small graveyard.

The projection comprises the minister’s room / session room and the entrance which now acts as the main entrance. To the left side of the W face is a timber door with vertical sheeting and a small vision panel. To the right is a 6/6 sash window. To the left side of the first floor is a tall semicircular arch headed sash window 14/6 which is partly set within a small gabled half dormer. To the right is a 6/6 sash window as before. There is a moulded and dentilled eaves course. The gabled S face of the projection is blank. The E face has a 6/6 sash window to the left of the ground floor and a similar but smaller one to the right side of the first floor. The eaves course is dentilled as before.

The S face of the E wing has a tall double window to the left side. It comprises a 6/6 sash to ground floor and a semicircular arch headed 8/6 sash window directly over. To the right of ground floor are two unevenly spaced 6/6 sash-windows. The E face is gabled and has a mainly hipped roof stair projection to the right side. Above the projection roof is a semicircular fixed light window. The right side of the stair projection is hipped but the left side is cut short to give a lean-to effect to the S face. The E face of the return is blank while its N face has an 11/6 semicircular arch headed sash window. The left side of the main gable is blank. The N face of the E wing has two 6/6 sash windows.

The N wing has two 6/6 sash windows to the E face. The N gable is mainly obscured by a full width stair projection. The N face of the projection has a semicircular arch headed window set to the apex of the gable. The window is fixed and has 25 panes the upper of which form an intersecting gothic tracery effect. There is a timber sheeted door to the E face of the projection. Only the apex of the main gable is visible and has a small louvered roof space ventilator to the centre. To the W face of the N wing there are two sash windows, both 6/6.

The N side of the W wing has two 6/6 sash windows. The main W gable has a stair projection to the left side. The projection is mainly hipped roofed. Its N face has an 11/6 semicircular arch headed sash window. The W side of the return is blank while the S side has a plain timber sheeted door. The hipped roof is cut short at this face creating a lean-to roof effect. Above the hipped roof is a semicircular arch fixed light window. The S face of the main wing has two 6/6 sash windows.

The façade is finished in unpainted rough cast. The roof is slated. The ridges of the roofs to the wings of the original ‘T’ shape are at the one level but the roof of the smaller later S projection is set at a much lower level. Cast iron rw goods.

The surrounding graveyard is itself surrounded by a High rendered wall. To the W (Stream Street) side is the gateway which has tall square pillars topped with stone urns. The gates have spear-head decoration and may be mid 19th century. The steps to the gateway have been reconstructed in recent years and have narrow treads which are relatively difficult to climb.

Historical information

This church was built in c.1711 and is shown on a c.1720 plan of Downpatrick. It was originally T-shaped the small projection to the south added at a later date. A map of 1729 shows what appears to be the outline of such a projection, however.

The church is shown in its present form on the OS map of 1834 and described in the OS Memoirs of December 1836 as ‘accommodating 750 persons, having 3 galleries’.

References- Primary sources
1 British Library, Addit. MS 9750, ff.71b-72 ‘A plan of the town of Downpatrick (c.1720)
2 British Library, Addit. MS 21, 131, f.90 ‘A plan of the town of Downpatrick 1729’
3 PRONI OS/6/3/37/1 OS map, Down sh 37, 1834
4 Ordnance Survey memoirs of Co Down (IV), ed Angélique Day and Patrick McWilliams (QUB 1992), pp.45-6 [Dec. 1836]
5 PRONI VAL/1B/378 First valuation, Down, c.1838
6 PRONI VAL/1D/3/7 First valuation town plan of Downpatrick, c.1838
7 PRONI OS/8/9/1/1-24 OS town plans of Downpatrick, 1859
8 PRONI Second valuation, Down, 1863 [in print]
9 PRONI VAL/12E/120/1 Revaluation manuscript books, Downpatrick, 1864-1901
10 PRONI VAL/12E/120/1/1-24 Revaluation town plans of Downpatrick, 1864-1901 [12 sheets missing]
11 PRONI OS/8/9/2/1-3 OS town plans of Downpatrick, 1901
12 PRONI VAL/12E/120/2/1-3 Revaluation town plans of Downpatrick, 1906-35

Secondary sources
1 Archaeological survey of Co Down (Belfast HMSO 1966), pp.343-4. plates 125, 130
2 Lady Dunleath, P.J. Rankin, A Rowan, ‘Historic buildings…Downpatrick’ (Belfast 1970), p.19
3 R.S.J. Clarke, ‘Gravestone inscriptions of Co Down’ vol.3, (Belfast ?1973), pp.
4 Anthony M. Wilson, ‘Saint Patrick’s town’ (Belfast 1995), pp.127-29, 155-6, 161, 165, 174, 186, 187, 191, 192, 194, 203, 209 etc.
5 R.H. Buchanan and Anthony Wilson, ‘Irish historic towns atlas no.8: Downpatrick’ (Royal Irish Academy 1996)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Z. Rarity
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Impressive and scarce, ‘vernacular’ Non-subscribing Presbyterian church of c. 1711, which began life as T-shaped, assuming its present cruciform plan possibly in the late 18th century, when the small S projection was added.