Hillview

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Detached symmetrical three-bay two-storey vernacular house, built c. 1820, located to the west of Rushvale Road, Ballyclare. Rectangular-on-plan with single-storey pitched roof return to each gable.

Roof is pitched natural slate with blue/black clay ridge tiles; plain timber bargeboards supported on exposed rafter ends; rendered corbelled gable chimneystacks with terracotta pots; half-round cast-iron rainwater goods. Walls are roughcast rendered; windows are square-headed 1/1 timber sliding sashes with painted masonry cills.

Principal elevation faces north and has three openings to each floor arranged about a central gabled entrance porch. Entrance porch north gable contains modern hardwood entrance door; window to each cheek.

Left gable is abutted by single-storey outbuilding with pitched roof, detailed as main house. Exposed section is blank.

Rear elevation contains three windows at each floor. (Two windows to right at ground floor are timber casements.)

Right gable is abutted by single-storey outbuilding with pitched corrugated metal roof. Exposed section is blank.

North elevation of left gable return has a single timber sheeted door to right; 6/6 timber sliding sash window to east gable; south (rear) elevation is blank.

North elevation of right gable return has central timber sheeted door; timber casement to each side. Right gable is abutted by further outbuilding similarly detailed with pitched corrugated metal roof; timber double doors to north.

Setting

House bounded along Rushvale Road by painted dry stone walling enclosing garden to south. Yard to north is open to roadside. Perpendicular multi-bay two-storey outbuilding to west of yard. Roughcast rendered with timber fenestration intact and pitched natural slate roof.

Walling: Roughcast render.
Roof: Pitched natural slate with blue/black clay ridge tiles.
Windows: timber sliding sashes
Doors: Painted timber sheeted
Rainwater goods: Half-round cast iron.

Historical information

The building is shown in its current form on the first edition OS map of 1832.

The property is not detailed in the Townland Valuation of 1836. However, Griffith’s Valuation of 1859 records the property as a ‘house, office and land’ and the occupier as James Mahon. The building is valued at £1.6s.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/1/51/1- First Edition OS Map(1832)
2. PRONI OS/6/1/51/2- Second Edition OS Map (1857)
3. PRONI OS/6/1/51/3- Third Edition OS Map (1902)
4. PRONI VAL/1/A/51- Townland Valuation Map (1836)
5. PRONI VAL/2/B/1/12- Griffith’s Valuation (1859)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

A well-preserved, plainly detailed three-bay two-storey direct-entry vernacular house, built c.1820, located to the west of Rushvale Road, Ballyclare. The house is well proportioned with plan form intact and original features well maintained; a good example of the vernacular architectural style within Northern Ireland but of a relatively common type of which there are better examples.