Lough View

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Two storey gabled farm house of c.1880s with decorative mouldings to windows, possibly built around an earlier house of pre 1834 origin. The building is set to the E of Scrabo Road c.1 mile S of Newtownards.

The symmetrical E front faces away from the road and looks towards Strangford Lough. In the centre of the ground floor is a projecting flat roofed porch. To the front of the porch is a recent partly glazed door with recent matching 6 pane sidelights and three pane elliptical arch fanlight over. The whole ensemble is set within an elliptical arch headed opening with plain surround. To both the N and the S sides of the porch is a segmental arch headed window encased with plain pilasters, moulded archivolt with decorative keystone and brackets to cills. The frame to each window is modern, with similar frames to all other windows.

To either side of the porch are twinned windows with surrounds etc. as before. To the first floor are three sets of twinned windows, slightly narrower than those to the ground floor and with semicircular heads and archivolts (without keystone).

To the N gable is a small flat arch window to the far right with plain surround. To the first floor are two single windows, similar in style to first floor windows front.

The S gable has two windows as N gable to first floor. To the left on the ground floor is a large doorway with modern glazed double doors. The doorway is surrounded by a hipped roof PVC conservatory.

The rear facade has four flat arch windows to the ground floor of varying size, with moulded architraves with decorative keystone to the 3rd and 4th windows. The first window has a plain surround and the 2nd window has a similar surround but with decorative keystone. This window used to be a doorway.

The entire facade is finished in an unusually effective pebbledash with chamfered quoins and base. The roof has Bangor blue slates with two pebbledashed chimney stacks with simple corbelling.

This house is well maintained and the facade is attractively presented.

Outbuildings to E. Wrought iron railings and gate to left at front and to NW of house are stamped ‘W. Kennedy N.T.Ards 1888’.

Historical information

A building is shown on this site on the 1834 OS map and on that of 1858-60. The present house could well retain some of the fabric of the earlier dwelling, but in its present form this house dates from c.1880-1890.
The current owner acquired the property in 1984 and installed the modern window frames. He also appears to have made the rear doorway into a window.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI OS Maps 1st ed. 1834, Co. Down 5.
2 PRONI OS Maps 1st rev. 1858-60, Co. Down 5.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Neat and compact two storey late Victorian gabled farm house of c.1880s with decorative window surrounds. The window frames are now modern but the facade is largely intact and the interior appears to have retained its original layout and some of its detailing.
This property may have been built around an earlier house of pre 1834 origin.