Harbour House

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

The harbour house is a small-ish two storey, mainly brick built, gabled dwelling, enclosed within a small yard and situated near the south end of the south pier of Donaghadee harbour. The house was built in 1864 for the keeper of Donaghadee lighthouse and it has served in this capacity ever since.

Front SE facade has a left of centre panelled door with plain fanlight. To the left is a PVC sash window with vertical astragals, with two similar windows to right of door. The bottom half of the front facade projects slightly at both the front and to the NE gable, with a painted stone course topping the projecting lower half. To the first floor of the front facade are four unevenly spaced windows, as ground floor only slightly smaller.

To the left on the ground floor of the NE gable is a timber sheeted door. To the right of this is a single storey gabled outhouse with mono-pitched roof. This gable and the front facade are in red brick with flush stone quoins (now painted). Slim chamfered plinth.

The lower half of rear facade and part of the lower half the SW gable are built into the surrounding rubble wall (with the wall projecting), the upper halves are finished in plain render. There is a window, as front, to the first floor left on the rear facade.

The roof is gabled with a slight overhang to the eaves and exposed (curved) rafter tails. There are two brick chimney stacks with stone coping, one to the SW gable, the other off centre. The roof has Bangor blue slates. Cast iron rw goods.

Rubble wall to NE and SE enclosing yard.

Historical information

According to the Commission of Irish Lights, this house was built in 1864 for the keeper of the Donaghadee lighthouse, a function it has served ever since. There is a building shown on this sight on the OS Map of 1858-60, which may have been an earlier lighthouse keepers’ dwelling.

References- Primary sources.

1. PRONI OS Maps 1st rev. 1858-60, Co. Down 3.

Secondary sources

1. Hugh Dixon et al Historic buildings, groups of buildings, buildings of architectural importance in Donaghadee and Portpatrick (UAHS 1977), p.21.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest
Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance

Evaluation

Good quality and robustly detailed two storey red brick lighthouse keeper’s house of 1864.