Historic Buildings Record · Northern Ireland
’Old Life Boat House’,
Ballyhalbert, Ards and North Down, Northern Ireland
The record
- Designation
- Record only (not listed)
- Grade
- Record Only
- Type
- House
- Date of construction
- 1820 - 1839
- Address
- ’Old Life Boat House’,, [?4A] Portavogie Road, Ballyhalbert, Newtownards, Co Down, BT22 1BU
- Townland
- Ballyhalbert
- Council
- Ards and North Down
- Country
- Northern Ireland
- Coordinates
- 54.52610, -5.47152
- Date of survey
- 16 September 1997
- HB reference
- HB24/03/023
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.
David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries
Shown on 3 historical map sheets, the earliest the 1794 "Sheet 55. (Cary's England, Wales, and Scotland)." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
The Department's description
Exterior description and setting
Former long rectangular boat house set on the rocky shore line to the south of Ballyhalbert, now converted to a dwelling house with many multi pane timber windows, asbestos slate hipped roof, plain render, PVC gutters and down spouts, chimney etc. Nothing appears to remain of this building’s former existence except for the remnants of the stone slipway for the boat at the E gable, a gable which itself must have once incorporated a large (probably arched) doorway for the boat.
Historical information
A building is shown on this site and marked ‘Coast Guard Station’ on the OS Map of 1834, which, so the OS Memoirs noted, was staffed by ‘6 coastguard men and 1 chief officer’. Some later built dwellings just to the north of the former boat house are still known as ‘Coast Guard Cottages’.
References- Primary sources
1 PRONI Ordnance Survey Maps, 1st Edition, 1834, Co. Down 18.
2 Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland Vol.7: Parishes of County Down II, ed. Angelique Day and Patrick McWilliams (QUB 1991), p. 6.
3 PRONI VAL 1B/312 1st valuation, St. Andrews, c.1835.
4 PRONI Ordnance Survey Maps, 1st Revision, 1860, Co. Down 18.
5 PRONI 2nd valuation, St. Andrews, c.1863.
Criteria for listing: architectural interest
Not listed
Criteria for listing: historic interest
Not listed
Evaluation
Former boat house of the early nineteenth century now converted to a dwelling house, with many new window and door openings created in the process.
Nearby in the register
- Ballyobegan House,Houseunder 1 mi
- Road bridge and screenBridgeunder 1 mi
- Ballywalter Park House & garden wallingCountry Houseunder 1 mi
- Home farmEstate Related Structures1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.