Islandreagh House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Detached three-bay two-storey rendered farmhouse, built c.1820, facing south and located to east end of Islandreagh Road. It is rectangular on plan with a modern single-storey flat-roofed extension to west gable and also a three-window-wide two-storey addition (c.1960) abutting east end of north elevation. Two modern single-storey flat-roofed quadrant linking blocks to southeast and northwest (entrance porch) internal angles.

The roof is pitched with painted timber overhanging eaves and bargeboards and simple rendered gable chimneystacks. Walling is smooth rendered with V-jointed quoins. Windows are all square-headed painted timber 6/6 sashes with rendered masonry cills, unless otherwise stated.

The principal elevation faces south with the entrance off-centre. The two floors of three windows have moulded architraves and are hornless with original cylinder glass lights. The elliptical-arched entrance opening has a moulded painted timber surround with recessed panels to soffits, moulded architrave-transom supported on two Doric columns with Regency-style spiderwebbed fanlight. Geometric-glazed sidelights-on-plinths flank painted timber door of twelve raised and fielded panels (panels divided by lock-rail into two sections of two rows: square top panels and longer rectangular base panels).

The west gable is abutted to ground floor by a flat-roofed extension. First floor has one window and there is round-headed 12/6 sash to attic. The extension west elevation has a flat-headed canted bay with a central 10/10 sash flanked by 6/6 sashes to either side. The left end of the annex has an oculus with radial glazing. The south elevation of the annex has a single tripartite window flanked by 2/2 sashes; the north elevation has two square-headed 3/3 sashes.

The north elevation is abutted to the left end by the modern north addition and has a quadrant entrance porch to the internal angle of that junction. The centre bay of the main house has two round-headed 9/6 sashes stacked on top of each other to first floor level. The main house elevation has another window and there are two 3/3 sashes to the annex. The modern entrance porch has a modern central door flanked by a six-light casement to each side.

The east gable has a single window to the first floor and a round-headed 9/6 sash window to attic. It is abutted by a modern glazed quadrant linking block to the north addition.

The house is set in extensive grounds with gravel forecourt, manicured lawned gardens, boxhedges to front, with a modern glazed enclosed pool to the southeast. The house is to the southeast corner of the farmcourt, which has three roughcast outbuildings, all are multi-bay with pitched roofs, and replacement painted timber casements. There is a single-storey stable block to the west with skylights and two stable half-doors, a two-storey garage to the north. A third single-storey outbuilding abuts the right end of the addition north gable. Another detached modern range of outbuildings and a greenhouse lie to the northwest. The house is set back from road and accessed by a rendered boundary wall-lined avenue with cylindrical pillars that leads to a roundabout and opens onto farmyard.

Windows: Painted timber 6/6 sashes
Doors: Original painted timber raised and fielded 12 panel door
Roof: Natural slate pitched roofs
Rainwater goods: Painted moulded metal gutters

Historical information

Built c.1800, the house appears on 1834 OS map as rectangular in plan to present location. Detached outbuildings to north and west, unchanged in both mid-nineteenth-century second and early-twentieth-century third OS survey maps. The north and west buildings were merged on the 1921 OS map. Owner recalls north addition, linking block, and entrance porch added in the late 1960s.

The 1836 Townland Valuation noted the property as owned by Mr. James Back. The house, yard and offices were valued £4.8s.0d. The 1859 valuations recorded the house as occupied by Mr. William Back, who was also the immediate lessor. The value of the house, offices, and land were £12.0.0

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/1/50/1 -1834, OS Map, First Edition, Co. Antrim, no. 50, 1834
2. PRONI OS/6/1/50/2, OS Map, Second Edition, Co. Antrim, no. 50, 1860
3. PRONI OS/6/1/50/3, OS Map, Third Edition, Co. Antrim, no. 50, 1902
4. PRONI OS/6/1/50/4 – 1921, OS Map, Fourth Edition, Co. Antrim, no. 50, 1921
5. PRONI VAL1A/1/50 - 1836, Townland Valuation Map, Co. Antrim, no. 163, 1836
6. PRONI VAL1B/163 - 1836, Townland Valuation Field book, 1836
7. PRONI VAL2A/1/50A, B, C - 1859, Townland Valuation Map, Co. Antrim, no. 50, 1859

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A well preserved asymmetrical three-bay two-storey farmhouse that sits within a largely contemporary farmyard complex and well preserved avenue and grounds. The doorcase is of particular high quality with an elaborated fan and sidelights and Doric columns.