'Burn Houses'

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

The Burn Houses are a terrace of dwellings set on the eastern shoreline of the Ards peninsula on the northern edge of the small town of Ballyhalbert. The houses themselves are all two storey and appear to be of considerable age, but part of the terrace has recently been demolished with the remainder largely greatly altered.

Nos.130-2 have been demolished with three modern houses built on the site.

No.134 is a single fronted house finished in rough cast render and has a plain timber sheeted door to the right and a large modern multi pane timber window to the left, with two narrower multi pane windows to the first floor. Bangor Blue slates to roof.

No.136 is a much larger double fronted house with an off centre plain sheeted double door with a large modern style PVC window to the left and to the right with three modern PVC windows to the first floor (with two to centre and left much smaller than that to right). This house is finished in limestone chip render with smooth cement render surrounds to door and windows. Bangor Blue slates to roof.

No.138 is probably the least altered of the whole terrace and is finished in rough cast render with an off centre timber glazed door with a modern two pane timber window to the left, two similar to the right and four to the first floor. All the window openings appear original and the windows are a reasonable attempt to simulate the original sliding sash and case. Bangor Blue slates to roof.

No.140 is not rendered and displays random rubble construction. PVC glazed door (with single large pane of glass making up almost all of door) to right with single pane PVC window to left and two similar windows to first floor. Smooth cement surrounds to all openings. Exposed N gable of No.140 rendered. Bangor Blue slates to roof. Two modern Velux window inserted in roof.

Mixture of rendered and brick chimney stacks to terrace. Mixture of PVC and cast iron gutters and down spouts to whole terrace, with various returns (some quite old) to rear with mixture of mainly modern windows. Remains of out houses.

Historical information

This terrace is shown on the 1834 OS Map and named as ‘The Burn Houses’, the word ‘Burn’ referring to a small stream which once ran at the rear of the houses. At this date there was a ‘wind mill stump’a few yards to the north of the terrace, and a ‘corn mill’ just to the south. The present owner of No.138 (1997), informed the writers that she believed a tunnel ran under her own house and that the terrace as a whole may have had secret passages/rooms once used by smugglers.

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), pp. 5-6.
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

Shoreline terrace of largely plain pre 1834 two storey dwellings, now partly demolished and with remaining original dwellings greatly altered.