Fairholme House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A three-bay two storey attached house built c.1880, located off a private road to the north of the Craigdarragh Road, Helens Bay. Square on plan with two-storey canted bay to east.

Pitched natural slate roof with hipped roof over canted bay. Chimneys are painted render stacks with stone plinth and terracotta pots; projecting additional flue to stack at north gable. Cast-iron ogee rainwater goods on cavetto moulded eaves cornice. Walling is painted smooth render with plinth; cavetto moulded cornice; ‘box’ panel moulding between floors on canted bay; continuous bead moulded course to top of first floor windows. Windows are 1/1 timber-framed sliding sash with moulded surrounds and continuous cills.

The principal entrance elevation faces SE and is three openings wide with openings close together in centre of façade. Central four-panelled entrance door with fanlight and brass door furniture; chamfered reveal and fluted pilasters; decorative console brackets surmounted by shallow broken-bed pediment.

The SW elevation is abutted by adjoining building.

The NW elevation is abutted to first floor by adjoining building (HB23/16/018C)

The NE elevation comprises canted bay to left; to right, paired windows to each floor. Paired windows divided by simple central Doric pilaster.

Setting

The house is set back from a private road; having timber electric entrance gates and stone piers with pointed caps. Pebbled to south and east. Enclosed on all sides by mature hedges.

Roof: Natural slate
Walling: render
Windows: timber
RWG: Cast-iron

Historical information

The house dates from 1882 and forms part of a complex of buildings, some of which were formerly in use as a mill, dating from c.1840.

The complex is first shown, uncaptioned, on the second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1858. The entry in Griffith’s Valuation (1856-64) is for a ‘steward’s house, flax mill, offices and land’, part of the estate belonging to Craigdarragh House (HB23/16/017). Robert Francis Gordon, the occupier of Craigdarragh House, is the owner. The property is leased from the representatives of Robert S Kennedy and valued at £75 for buildings. Dimensions are given for a house, flax mill and numerous outbuildings including a stable, cow house and two piggeries. Specifications are also given for the ‘steam flax mill’ which has a 10 horse power engine, 12 stocks and 1 set of rollers. It works for four months a year, twelve hours a day and a ‘thrashing machine’ is worked at the same time. The valuer notes that there is also an oil mill but this ‘cannot be worked with the above machinery’.

In 1863 the mill becomes the property of Lord Dufferin and Clandeboye, who had also taken over Craigdarragh House. The flax mill is noted to have ‘burned down’ by 1872 and there is a consequent reduction in the valuation to £40.

In 1882 the steward’s house was deleted from the record and the plot was redeveloped, buildings being described as ‘in progress’. By 1883, the site was let as three separate properties valued at £45, £11 and £9. The divisions between the different houses in the group seem to have been somewhat fluid at this stage and the valuation records are not completely clear. However it appears that what is now Fairholme House (HB23/16/18B) and a separate neighbouring house to the south west (HB23/16/18A) was, at this stage, a single property valued at £45 and let to Margaret Hill. What is now Mill Cottage (HB23/16/18C) was a second property which was let to David Patterson by 1887 and valued at £9. What is now the Old Mill House (HB23/16/18D) to the north of the plot was valued at £11 and let to the Hartley family. The properties were now leased from Thomas Workman of Craigdarragh House. In 1900, Thomas Workman is listed as the occupier of all three houses and from this point it appears that the houses are let, for the most part, to relatives or associates of the Workman family.

Fairholme House and its neighbour continued to be let as a single property with James Mackey as a tenant. In 1911 all the lessors requested a revision of their valuation and the valuer charged with this task made notes on the houses and drew a plan. At this time Edith Ewing was the lessor of Fairholme which was vacant and comprised three reception rooms, five bedrooms and a servants room, a kitchen, pantry &c with a pump in the kitchen, the water supply coming from Clandeboye reservoir. The valuation for this house was not changed. In 1913 the house was taken over by James Taylor.

By 1933 ‘Fairholme’ was the property of the Very Rev Edward Dupre Atkinson and leased from Craigdarragh Estates Ltd. It was valued at £45 later raised to £72 (n.d.) and comprised 6 bedrooms, three receptions, a kitchen, scullery, pantry and 2 bathrooms. The water came from Helen’s Bay and the house had electric light. A plan and dimensions are given showing a motor house and a porch. The valuation was appealed in 1935 and the valuer notes, ‘Old type semi-detached residence in good position…Very large rooms, slightly damp in places…Poor offices, good garden’.

The Very Reverend Edward Dupre Atkinson (b.1855) was Archdeacon of Dromore from 1905 to 1930 and appears to have retired to the current house. He was a keen local historian and published two works, ‘An Ulster Parish’ in 1898 and ‘Dromore: An Ulster Diocese’ in 1925. (Clergy of Down and Dromore, Part II, p.47-8)

In 1949 the house was converted into two flats, occupied by Ulric G Huggins on the ground floor and Joseph Patterson (first floor). The flats were valued at £52 each. Of the first floor valuer notes, “Nice flat more attractive than ground floor flat. Nicely done up, nice fittings in bathroom. It is understood that tenant is a relation of owner.”

The house has now been divided into two dwellings, the portion to the south east continuing to bear the name, ‘Fairholme House’.

References:

Primary Sources

1.PRONI OS/6/3/1/2 – Second Edition OS map 1858
2.PRONI OS/6/3/1/3 – Third Edition OS Map 1900-02
3.PRONI OS/6/3/1/4 – Fourth Edition OS Map 1919-31
4.PRONI OS/6/3/1/5 – Fifth Edition OS Map 1938-41
5.PRONI VAL/2/B/3/1 – Griffith’s Valuation Map (1856-64)
6.PRONI VAL/2/B/3/18B – Griffith’s Valuation (1856-64)
7.PRONI VAL/12/A/3/20 – Valuer’s Notebook (1907-11)
8.PRONI VAL/12/B/17/10A-G – Annual Revisions (1867-1930)
9.PRONI VAL/12/B/17/11A-C – Annual Revisions (1888-1930)
10.PRONI VAL/3/D/4/4/F/6 – Valuer’s RV Binder (1933-56)

Secondary Sources

1.Rankin, F., Leslie, Canon, J.B., Swanzy, Dean H.B. “Clergy of Down and Dromore” Belfast: Ulster Historical Foundation, 1996

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A three-bay two-storey attached house, built c.1880. The house forms part of a complex of buildings, some of which were formerly in use as a mill. The setting is of note, with a large kitchen garden (no longer in use) to west which is enclosed by an old brick and rubble wall. Individually, and as part of a group, this house if of interest.

General comments

Previous reference was HB23/16/018, new reference is HB23/16/018B.