60 Carlane Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

An asymmetrical two-storey three-bay Edwardian brick and render farmhouse, built 1909. The house is located on the north side of Carlane Road and faces south. Rectangular on plan, with full-height canted bays to principal elevation and a modern (1976) extension to rear. Roof is pitched natural slate with stepped red brick gable chimneys having moulded corbelled coping; decorative lead finials to gables. Walling is roughcast over a smooth rendered plinth; red brick stepped quoins to main block and projecting left bay; canted bays are red brick with continuous moulded lintels and roughcast aprons to ground floor windows. Windows are uPVC 1/1 sashes with stepped brick reveals, stop-end chamfered rendered lintels and painted masonry sills, unless otherwise stated.

The principal consists of an opening to each bay at each floor. Canted bays have an opening to each cheek. The central bay consists of an segmental headed door opening contained in a slightly projecting brick porch with moulded brick cornice and shallow slated roof, hipped to one side (left side of porch abuts projecting left bay). The door is uPVC double-leaf ( matching original timber), each leaf with two lower panels, glazed central panel and twin round headed glazed upper panels; segmental-headed transom light over, all set in a bead-moulded and filleted brick surround. The door is surmounted by a diminished in size segmental headed window with stepped brick reveals and smooth rendered lintel.

The left gable has a window to ground floor left; the apex has a brick panel.

The rear elevation has a projecting stairwell to centre with round-headed timber stained glass window with brick reveals and brick archivolt at landing level. The right bay is abutted by the extension; exposed right bay has a window to first floor. Small lean-to boiler house to internal angle, of no interest.

The right gable has a window to first floor right.

The house is visible from the road at the head of a slightly curving drive flanked by lawns and mature trees. It is accessed by a pair of cast-iron gates on square brick piers with plinth and pyramidal rendered caps, flanked by quadrant walls with segmental coping and terminating with smaller piers. To east is a farmyard framed by one and a half and two storey outbuildings with pitched slate roofs and random basalt rubble walling, some roughcast rendered. Openings are painted timber sheeted, including loft dormers with timber sheeted cheeks.

Roof: Pitched natural slate
Walling: Red brick and painted roughcast
Windows: uPVC sashes (two remaining timber sashes)
Rainwater goods: Replacement metal gutters, cast-iron downpipes.

Historical information

A previous building is marked on the site on the first and second edition OS maps. The Valuation Revision of 1890 values this same house at £2.0s, and records the owner and occupier as John Chesney. The current house appears to have been newly built on the same site in 1908, when the valuation has significantly increased to £9, but the house is noted to be vacant. The following year, 1909, the occupant is recorded as John Chesney, in whose family the house remains.

A local source indicated that the house is one of three in the area built by McManus of Randalstown. McManus Builders Merchants retains commercial premises in Randalstown today, and Slater's Directory of 1894 records 'McManus, Hugh & Sons, Main Street, Randalstown - Ironmongers and Hardware Men' and the Belfast and Ulster Directory of 1902 lists the same business as ‘Steam sawing, Joinery mills and Builders’ (See also HB20/01/023 and HB20/01/024). This suggests that the internal joinery and construction were carried out by the same firm. The builder's merchants retains commercial premises in Randalstown, and, although it is no longer owned by the McManus family, the name has been retained.

The building was extended to the rear in 1976.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/1/48/1 First edition OS map (1832)
2. PRONI OS/6/1/48/2 Second edition OS map (1857)
3. PRONI VAL/12B/1/10C Valuations Revision Notebook (1890-1896)
4. PRONI VAL/12B/1/10D Valuations Revision Notebook (1896-1912)
5. PRONI VAL/12B/1/10E Valuations Revision Notebook (1911-1929)
6. PRONI Slater's Commercial Directory, 1894
7. PRONI Belfast & Ulster Street Directory, 1902

Secondary Sources

1. Information from current owner

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

An asymmetrical two-storey three-bay Edwardian brick and render farmhouse; A well constructed and nicely-proportioned Edwardian farmhouse with canted bays and attractive brick detailing, located in a farmyard setting close to the Lough Neagh foreshore. The house retains most original fabric and salient original features throughout. The house is one of three in the local area constructed by McManus builders of Randalstown at the turn of the century, and, unlike the other two (HB20/01/023 and HB20/01/024), possesses a slightly urban character. Enhanced by well-maintained outbuildings, the house makes a positive contribution to the character of the area.