125 Belfast Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Detached three-bay two-storey painted rendered house, built c.1870, located to south of Belfast Road.

L-plan, facing north; modern canted conservatory abuts south elevation of return, flat-roofed kitchen extension abuts west elevation of conservatory, both of no interest. Roof is pitched with rendered blocked chimneystacks to gable ridges, each with two octagonal terracotta beaded chimneypots. Walling is block-marked with moulded corbelled-out eaves. Windows are square-headed bipartite painted timber hexagonal-glazed side-hung casements with painted reveals and masonry sills. Caned windows were popular in the early 20th century.

North elevation has central square-headed painted timber and glazed door.

East gabled has off-centre window to mezzanine; gable apex has central window in four centred-arched recessed opening. Return has off-centre canted bay to ground floor.

South elevation abutted to right by return. Exposed south elevation has single window to both floors. Return abutted to ground floor by conservatory.

West gable is same as east gable but without mezzanine window, abutted by single-storey pitched garage. Left of return and right of conservatory abutted by kitchen extension.

Setting

Set back from Belfast Road by short yard and rendered dwarf wall, paved drive to right accessing garage, second drive to left accessing rear yard and screened by painted wrought-iron hinged gate. Detached shed to left of second drive. Rear yard has lawns and topiary hedgerows enclosed to rear by mature trees.

Roof: natural slate
Walling: rendered
Windows: timber
Rainwater goods: cast-iron

Historical information

A house appears on the 1834 OS map. The Griffiths Valuation records a ‘Herd’s house and land’ occupied by Thomas Giffin. The buildings, leased from William Chaine, were valued at £4 10s. The building appears unchanged in the subsequent two editions of the OS maps from the 1850s and early 1900s. The house had changed by the 1921 OS map, when there appears to be an addition to the southeast.

In 2008, the homeowner claimed to the Divisional Planning Office, Ballymena, that the house dated to 1909. That year likely corresponds to the rear addition.

The house photographed in 1977 painted pink with west garage abutting gable of a now demolished three-bay single-storey house with pitched roof, brick chimneystack to gable ridge, pebble-dashed walling, similar windows and a central sheeted timber door. Site of that house is a concrete lot. Present homeowner states house was home to the manager of a stables and granary nearby.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/1/50/1, OS Map, First Edition, Co. Antrim, no.50.
2. PRONI OS/6/1/50/2, OS Map, Second Edition, Co. Antrim, no.50.
3. PRONI OS/6/1/50/3, OS Map, Third Edition, Co. Antrim, no.50.
4. PRONI OS/6/1/50/4, OS Map, Fourth Edition, Co. Antrim, no.50.
5. PRONI VAL/2B/1/52A, Griffith's Valuation Fieldbook, First Edition, Co. Antrim
6. PRONI VAL/2A/1/50B, Griffith's Valuation Map, First Edition, Co. Antrim

-- Secondary:
1. Boyle, D. B., Divisional Planning Office, Ballymena, Environment and Heritage Service, “For the attention of Ms. Emma Mulholland,” 14/05/2008.
2. Current owner

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

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Detached three-bay two-storey painted rendered house, built c.1870. A symmetrical early-nineteenth-century house with picturesque detailing such as decorative chimneystacks, ornate fenestration and eye-catching Tudor-arched recesses to gable apexes. This house retains it original detailing and historic character and is a good example of the type.