1-6 Shiels Houses, Larne Road, Carrickfergus, Co Antrim BT38 7EA

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A detached two-bay single-storey direct-entry vernacular house, built c.1850, located on the south side of Backfarm Road. Rectangular on plan, facing east; windbreaker porch to east, bed outshot to west.

Pitched corrugated iron roof, metal ridge caps, random rubble basalt chimneystacks to gable (cement rendered to south). Walling is random rubble (with traces of lime render). Windows are square-headed painted timber 2/2 sashes, stone sills.

Principal (east) elevation has a rubble stone catslide windbreaker porch to centre flanked by single window to each end (that to left is a replacement casement).

South gable is entirely abutted by outbuilding.

Rear (west) elevation is blank, with catslide bed outshot projecting off-centre.

North gable is blank with ghost mark of gabled outbuilding (with lower ridge, recently demolished).

Setting

The house is accessed via an earth drive, situated on overgrown site with numerous mature trees and shrubs to south, southeast, southwest and west. To south is an attached outbuilding, detailed as house with a square-headed entrance opening on east elevation, south gable is blank, west elevation is partly collapsed.

Roof: corrugated iron
Walling: Random rubbl
Windows: timber
RWG: None.

Historical information

The building is first shown on the second edition OS map of 1854.

Griffith’s Valuation of 1858 records a ‘house, offices and land’, which is valued at 15s. The occupier is James McCusker and the property is leased from Samuel Galbraith. Valuation Revisions do not show any significant changes, other than revisions to occupier name.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/6/34/1-4 - Ordnance Survey Maps (1833, 1854, 1905-6, 1936-7)
2. PRONI VAL/2/A/6/34 - Griffith’s Valuation Map (1858)
3. PRONI VAL/2/B/6/32A - Griffith’s Valuation (1858)
4. PRONI VAL/12/B/41/34A-F - Valuation Revisions (1860-1924)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

A detached two-bay single-storey direct-entry vernacular house, built c.1850. This house is of the direct-entry plan form and some detail survives. Of local interest, but of a common type and not one of the best examples.