Historic Buildings Record · Northern Ireland
The Poplars
Ballyblack, Ards and North Down, Northern Ireland
The record
- Designation
- Record only (not listed)
- Grade
- Record Only
- Type
- House
- Date of construction
- 1860 - 1879
- Address
- The Poplars, 55 Ballyblack Road, Ballyblack, Millisle, Newtownards, Co Down, BT22 2AZ
- Townland
- Ballyblack
- Council
- Ards and North Down
- Country
- Northern Ireland
- Coordinates
- 54.58191, -5.58357
- Date of survey
- 13 March 1998
- HB reference
- HB24/05/059
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 1854 "Ireland." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
The Department's description
Exterior description and setting
Large informal, recently renovated and extended farmhouse at the end of a lane on the SE side of the Ballyblack Road, c.1 mile NW of Carrowdore.
Front NW facade has right of centre doorway now surrounded with large-ish modern flat roofed porch/conservatory. To the right of this is a modern timber window with two similar (unevenly spaced) to the left. To the first floor are four unevenly spaced windows.
The NE gable is blank.
The SW gable has a modern window (as front) to the right on the ground floor.
The first floor of the rear facade has three varying sized and unevenly spaced modern windows to the first floor. To the right on the ground floor is a small single storey hipped roof projection/extension with a modern door to the rear facade and a modern window to the NE facade. To either side of this extension is a modern window.
The entire facade is finished in a dry dash ‘salt & pepper’ render with smooth rendered surrounds to openings, wall edges and base. Smooth render cill band to first floor front, similar band to gables.
The roof is pitched with Bangor blue slates and three unevenly spaced yellow brick chimney stacks. PVC rw goods.
The NE portion of this house (between the two NE chimney stacks) appears to have been added on/converted at some stage as it spoils the symmetry of the rest of the front facade. This section may have began life as a single storey barn/outbuilding attached to the NE gable.
Historical information
A building is shown on this general site on the OS Map of 1833/4, but its positioning and orientation do not match the siting of the present dwelling exactly. By the time of the revised OS Map (c.1858-60) a building had appeared on this exact site. Thus this house may date from some time between the 1830s and c.1860, however, its now asymmetric appearance and yellow brick chimneys suggests that it was extended in the later 1800s or early 1900s.
References- Primary sources
1 PRONI VAL 1B/34 Valuation records for the townland of Ballyblack (Parish of Newtownards) 1830s.
2 PRONI Ordnance Survey Maps 1st Edition 1833/4, Co. Down 6.
3 PRONI Ordnance Survey Maps 1st Revision 1858-60, Co. Down 6.
4 PRONI ‘Griffith’s’ valuation for the townland of Ballyblack (Parish of Newtownards) 1863.
Criteria for listing: architectural interest
Not listed
Criteria for listing: historic interest
Not listed
Evaluation
Large two storey farm house of probable mid nineteenth origin, extended probably in the later 1800s or early 1900s and recently renovated.
Nearby in the register
- AshbrookDemolishedunder 1 mi
- 38 Ballyblack RoadHouseunder 1 mi
- RookmountHouseunder 1 mi
- 94 Mountstewart RoadHouseunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.