Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB11/07/040

Address :
Camowen Green, Camowen Road, Omagh, BT79 0HA

Townland:
Camowen

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Survey 2:
B+

Date of Listing:
02/09/2010 00:00:00

Date of De-listing:

Current Use:
House

Former Use
House

Conservation Area:
No

Industrial Archaeology:
No

Vernacular:
No

Thatched:
No

Monument:
No

Derelict:
No

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OS Map No:
138-10

IG Ref:
H4921 6953

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Owner Category

Private

Exterior Description And Setting

Detached multi-bay two-storey rendered house, built c.1780, refurbished and extended c.1900. Rectangular on plan, facing south with a central circular entrance tower and a breakfront to the east which extends to rear to form a return. Single-bay two-storey entrance projection to east side elevation with an attached screen wall having an arched opening into rear yard. Glass house projecting from screen wall to south. Rear yard enclosed by single and two-storey stone outbuildings to east, north and west. Abutting east range is a further stone structure with barrel roof and a small two-bay two-storey outbuilding attached to its north gable. To the northwest, on the banks of the Camowen River is a stone structure housing a hydro-electric generator. Pitched natural slate roof with black clay ridge tiles, hipped to east breakfront with lead ridges, half-hipped to rear gable of return, conical roof to entrance tower. Five yellow brick chimneystacks and moulded cast-iron rainwater goods on cavetto moulded corbels to eaves. Painted ruled-and-lined rendered walling, rendered plinth course and rusticated rendered quoins to all corners. Square-headed window openings with moulded architrave surrounds, stone sills and horizontally-glazed timber sash windows (unless otherwise stated). Front south elevation comprises a lower two-bay two-storey section to the west (left), constituting the earlier part of the house (c.1780). To the centre is a circular entrance tower with a double-height round-headed window opening with moulded surround and impost mouldings, having leaded stained glass and weather-glazing. To either side of the tower is a square-headed door opening with moulded architrave surrounds, original raised-and-fielded timber panelled doors, and two blind openings above. To the east (right) is a taller breakfront, two windows wide. West side elevation is blind except for a single door opening with a glazed timber door having coloured margin lights. This door opening previously opened into an elaborate glass house, demolished c.1980, with a lean-to concrete canopy on pair of rendered piers. A brick chimneystack rises from this gable which takes the form of a catslide roof, abutted by a single-storey rendered outbuilding. Multi-bay two-storey north rear elevation with a wall-head dormer and projecting return of two storeys with attic-storey. The wall-head dormer and the secondary staircase to the return are lit by square-headed window openings with timber sash windows having coloured margin lights. Some replacement timber casement windows have been inserted to the west end of this elevation, otherwise 2/2 timber sash windows. Where the main body of the house meets the rear return is an irregular shaped window opening with a 45 degree angle containing a 2/1 timber sash window. A single door opening to the west end has a replacement timber panelled and glazed door opening onto cement platform steps. To the west elevation of the return is a diminutive single-storey accretion with catslide roof and small door opening with vertically-sheeted timber door. To the return is a circular moulded surround to a clock-face at attic level. East elevation is four windows wide with a single-bay two-storey projecting side entrance bay. Square-headed window openings with single-pane timber sash windows. Square-headed door opening to north of entrance bay with vertically-sheeted timber door. Additional square-headed door opening to south of entrance bay, inserted c.1980, with timber glazed door. Attached to the east entrance bay is a rendered brick double-height gate screen arch with stone coping and a corbelled brick bell aperture containing iron bell and an iron gate frame below, giving access to the rear yard. The screen wall continues as the south gable wall to the east range of outbuildings to the yard, with an iron-framed greenhouse projecting south having a low rendered wall and horizontal glazing in the form of a pointed arch and terminated by a pitched rendered gable. The single-storey east range to the rear yard has pitched natural slate roof with a lucarne to the south, cast-iron rainwater goods, rendered walling and square-headed window openings with stone sills and 2/2 timber sash windows. The north range is single-storey with loft having a pitched natural slate roof, cast-iron rainwater goods, lime-washed rubble stone walling and two carriage-arch openings. To the east end is a flight of stone steps to a loft door. A further segmental arch connects the north range to the east range with a corrugated iron barrel roof, giving access to the modern outbuildings to the rear. Attached to the west end is a two-storey outbuilding, set at an angle with hipped and pitched natural slate roof, steel casement windows and a flight of stone steps to its east gable, and a further double-height stone outbuilding abutting its north elevation with corrugated iron roof. Set at a right angle is a further single-storey structure with pitched natural slate roof and a pair of carriage arch openings, attached to the west gable of the house. Abutting the east elevation to the east range is a double-height stone barn supported on redbrick piers rising from the east elevation of the east range to a wrought and cast-iron riveted king-post truss roof with corrugated iron barrel roof and two lanterns. The gable wall to the north is abutted by a two-bay two-storey rubble stone structure with lean-to section to east having pitched natural slate roof, redbrick chimneystack to north gable, square-headed window and door openings formed in redbrick with replacement timber casement windows and timber glazed door. To the northwest on the banks of the Camowen river is a multi-bay single-storey stone structure housing the hydro-electric generator powered by a channel below. The house is set on an elevated site with landscaped grounds and a front lawn having two short avenues joining to the south leading to Camowen Road to the south and opening onto the road via a pair of decorative cast-iron gates on octagonal cast-iron posts. Roof Natural slate Walling Ruled-and-lined render Windows Timer sash Rainwater goods Moulded cast-iron

Architects

Not Known

Historical Information

The house is present on the first edition OS map of 1833 together with a ‘Mill’ to the south west and a ‘Mill Stream’ and ‘Old Bleach Green’. On the second edition (1854) the mill has gone but a number of additional outbuildings are present, some of which appear to have survived to the present day. A formal garden is also shown. In the Townland Valuation (1828-40) the building is listed as occupied by Mr Robinson and is valued at £16. Griffith’s valuation lists the occupier as John Norris who leases it from the Earl of Belmore. It is a house, offices and land valued at £14. The dimensions of house and 2 offices are given in addition to a turf house and fowl house. In the Annual Revision records the value is raised to £16 and in 1867/8 the house is occupied by Robert Harvey who becomes the owner in fee in 1887. In 1934 the house was still occupied by a Robert Harvey in fee, the plot consisting of a house, three cottier houses, a turbine house, offices and land. The house at this time comprised a scullery, store room, passage, kitchen, bedroom and WC, back hall, office, pantry, morning room, dining room, hall, drawing room and strong room. On the first floor there were five bedrooms, two servants’ bedrooms, a bathroom, WC and storeroom. The whole was valued at £75. In 1939 the value is reduced to £50 and the occupier becomes Fergus N Gilmour. The valuer notes, “There are several glass houses included in this valuation which are now used for growing tomatoes for commercial purposes…Dwelling is of large rambling old-fashioned type, some fine rooms, fine entrance hall and staircase. Own water and electric light supply and drains to river…very old (eighteenth century)”. According to information supplied by the owner the building was originally a plain Georgian house, built in the late eighteenth century, and extended and embellished at the beginning of the twentieth century. The owner also stated that a hydroelectric generator was installed in the house in 1907, which is still used to generate all power for the house, the turbine being supplied by Scott’s mill in Omagh. A glasshouse to the east of house was built by Skinner and Board in 1907 for vines, the front half of which was, unusually, a garage. To the west was a wrought iron and glass conservatory dismantled by the present owner in the 1980’s. These are both shown on the sketch plan made by valuers c.1934. According to the owner the north range of outbuidings was originally the first Baptist Church in the area, relocated here during the mid nineteenth-century using original king-post trusses and purlins. According to the owner the easternmost barn with barrel roof was the largest roof span in Ireland at the time of construction. The premises is presently in use as an organic farm. References: Primary Sources 1. PRONI OS/6/6/43/1 – First Edition OS Map (1833) 2. PRONI OS/6/6/43/2 – Second Edition OS Map (1854) 3. PRONI OS/6/6/43/3 – Third Edition OS Map (1906) 4. PRONI OS/6/6/43/4 – Fourth Edition OS Map (1936-8) 5. PRONI VAL/1/A/6/43 – Townland Valuation Map 6. PRONI VAL/1/B/626B – Townland Valuation (1828-40) 7. PRONI VAL/2/A/6/43 – Griffiths’ Valuation Map 8. PRONI VAL/2/B/6/28 – Griffith’s Valuation (1856-64) 9. PRONI VAL/12/B/41/6A-F – Annual Revision Records (1860-1929) 10. PRONI VAL/3/D/7/8R/1 – Valuers RV Binder (1933-57)

Criteria for Listing

Architectural Interest

A. Style B. Proportion C. Ornamentation D. Plan Form I. Quality and survival of Interior J. Setting

Historic Interest

Z. Rarity X. Local Interest

Evaluation

This late eighteenth-century house owes its present appearance to an extensive refurbishment at the beginning of the twentieth century when the eastern wing and circular stair tower were added in addition to much internal detailing which survives to the present. The remarkable stairhall remains the centre-piece to this house. When considered together with its outbuildings, glass house, landscaped grounds and hydro-electric generator, this group constitutes one of the most intact and extensive farm complexes of the middle-size in the area and is of considerable architectural and historic importance.

General Comments

New listing.

Date of Survey

11 June 2009