Ballynure Methodist Church

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Detached single-cell Methodist Church, dated 1846, located to the south of Main Street. Rectangular on plan with attached Sunday school to south and porch to north-east. Abutted to south by modern L-plan church hall (dated 1992).

Roofs are pitched and slated with clay ridge tiles and finials, and exaggerated timber bargeboards to gable-ends. Walls are coursed basalt rubble with granite quoins and buttresses. Windows are pointed-arched-headed with voussoirs and replacement concrete reveals, containing leaded stained glass.

North elevation has two plate tracery windows, with mood-moulding and label stop, each containing paired lancet windows with cusped oculus above. Elevation abutted to left by porch containing vertically sheeted timber door in Tudor-arched-headed chamfered entrance with stepped surround and hood-moulding, accessed by two steps. Exposed north elevation of Sunday school contains square-headed timber sheeted entrance door in shouldered chamfered surround.

East elevation of nave has two windows to left, divided by buttresses. Projecting bay to left contains two ogee Tudor-arched windows with lattice leading and continues to gable-end of Sunday school which contains single window and oculus to apex. Elevation abutted to right by porch containing single ogee Tudor-arched-headed window. Abutted to left by modern hall.

South elevation abutted by modern hall. Exposed wall to west contains square-headed window with dividing stone mullion.

West elevation of nave is divided in three by buttresses. Bay to left is extended and contains single window with reticulated tracery. Central bay has single window and right bay has two windows. Abutted to right by gable-end of Sunday school containing paired window to centre and quatrefoil oculus to apex.

Setting

Church is set on the edge of the village of Ballynure. It is bounded to Main Street by rubble walling with rough coping and octagonal rendered pillars supporting cast-iron vehicular and pedestrian gates.

Roof Natural Slate
Walling Coursed basalt rubble
Windows Pointed-arched-headed leaded stained glass
Rainwater goods Cast iron half-round guttering and round downpipes

Historical information

The building first appears on the OS map of 1857. Griffiths Valuation of 1859 records the building as ‘Methodist chapel and yard’, valued at £4.15s 0d. The building is leased from Conway R Dobbs (of Castle Dobbs, Carrickfergus) who owned a large portion of the land around the area at the time.

According to the OS Memoirs of the area, dated 1839, Methodist meetings were established in Ballynure in 1834, with first meetings held in a school room in the village, until the construction of the church in 1846. Ballynure Heritage Trail states that the church was the idea of Mr Robert Beatty, a prosperous local merchant who was responsible for fundraising, design and construction.

There is a datestone of 1846 to east elevation, with hall extension to the south dated 1992.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/1/45/1- First edition OS map (1833)
2. PRONI OS/6/1/45/1 - Second edition OS map (1857)
3. PRONI VAL/1/A/1/45 -Townland Valuation Map (1834)
4. PRONI VAL/2/A/1/45C -Griffiths Valuation Map (1859)
5. PRONI VAL/2/B/1/12 -Griffiths Valuation Fieldbook (1859)
6. OS Memoirs of Ireland, Parishes of County Antrim XII, 1832-33, 1835-40: Vol 32.

Secondary Sources

1. Ballynure Historical Group. Heritage Walking Trails in Newtownabbey. Ballynure. Newtownabbey Borough Council. [Internet source] (Accessed 01/05/09)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

A modestly scaled single-cell Gothic Revivalist Methodist Church to the edge of the rural village of Ballynure. The church has some good detailing including label stops to hood mouldings and sandstone window surrounds. The oversized bargeboards to gable-ends detract from the character of the building. The modern hall, constructed recently to the south of the church, is appropriately scaled so as not to detract from the historic building. The modern hall affects its setting and competes with the original church. The church is worthy of record but is of a relatively common type and not among the best examples.