Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB19/13/032

Address :
Orange Hall 36 Railway Street Lisburn County Antrim BT28 1XP

Townland:
Lisnagarvy

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Survey 2:
B2

Date of Listing:
06/12/2013 00:00:00

Date of De-listing:

Current Use:
Hall

Former Use
Hall

Conservation Area:
Yes

Industrial Archaeology:
No

Vernacular:
No

Thatched:
No

Monument:
No

Derelict:
No

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OS Map No:
165/6SE

IG Ref:
J2675 6449

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Owner Category

Exterior Description And Setting

Free-standing symmetrical single-bay two-storey pedimented Italianate rendered stone hall, dated 1871. Rectangular on plan facing west and set back slightly on the east side of Railway Street with its south side elevation fronting onto Wallace Avenue. Pitched natural slate roof with roll-moulded black clay ridge tiles, a single redbrick chimneystack and modern steel roof vents. Plastic guttering to boxed timber fascia and cast-iron vent pipes. Coursed rubble basalt walling with redbrick window linings to both side elevations, plain ruled and lined cement render to rear gable and decorative painted stucco walling to the front elevation. Pedimented symmetrical Italianate stucco-fronted front elevation with full-width empty pediment having modillioned cornice and moulded string course below. The elevation has a tripartite arrangement of openings with rusticated pilasters to either end and plain pilasters flanking the central bay. The upper central bay has three round-headed openings unified by elaborate mouldings comprising triple-arched cable hood mouldings rising from four squat panelled pilasters and continuous stiff-leaf capitals, resting on a single moulded sill course. To either side is a round-headed blind niche. The ground floor is defined by a continuous cornice moulding with projecting lettering spanning the central bay stating: 'ORANGE HALL 1871'. To the ground floor the central bay contains a central elliptical-headed door opening flanked by round-headed window openings and a continuous impost moulding set within rusticated walling. Replacement hardwood casement windows and hardwood doors, c.1990. To either side bay is an oculus with architrave surround and original fixed-pane rose window. Front door opens onto terrazzo platform and step to front concrete paved area. North side elevation has series of round-headed window openings to the upper level and square-headed openings to the lower level, all with redbrick surrounds and painted masonry sills. uPVC windows to both floors - sliding sash on the first floor and top hung to the ground. A steel fire escape is attached to the first floor and leads from a centrally placed door. Rear gable is blank with ruled and lined cement rendered walling, a single modern steel door. South side gable as per north elevation - also with a central fire escape from the first floor. This elevation is enclosed to Wallace Avenue by a tall redbrick wall. Setting: Rectangular on plan facing west on a corner site, set back slightly from Railway Street with its south side elevation fronting onto Wallace Avenue. Gravel car park to rear accessed via tall redbrick piers and steel gates on Wallace Avenue. Roof Natural slate RWG Plastic / cast-iron Walling Rubble basalt Windows uPVC / hardwood

Architects

MacHenry, John

Historical Information

‘Lisburn Orange Hall’ enters valuation records in 1872 and is first shown on the third edition OS map of c1900. The hall, valued at £35, was built on a site leased from the Marquess of Hertford, a lease that was later inherited by Sir Richard Wallace. By 1898 the lessors were Richard Knox and W D Pounder. (Annual Revisions) In 1869 a lease on a plot of land ‘on which to erect a Protestant Hall’ was granted to the Orangemen of Lisburn by Mr Walter Stannus, the agent of the Marquess of Hertford, at the nominal rent of 1s a year. It was felt that the large numbers of Orangemen in the town merited such a structure, to ‘counteract the great evils which result from their meeting in public-houses’. (Belfast Newsletter, 1869) It was decided to proceed with the building of the hall at a meeting of Orangemen held in May 1870, the cost being then estimated at ‘close upon a thousand pounds’. The list of subscribers was headed by Jonathan Richardson of Glenmore Bleach Works who had made by far the largest donation of £100. Richardson had died the previous year and the subscription was made good by his executors. (Belfast Newsletter, 1870) The foundation stone was laid on 13th August 1870. The architect was John MacHenry of Lisburn, surveyor to the Hertford estates, who was later to design Lisburn courthouse (now gone) and is also thought to have been supervising architect for Sir Richard Wallace’s Lisburn residence, Castle House (HB19/13/004). (www.dia.ie) The Hall is MacHenry’s earliest known work. According to the then custom, a bottle containing some of the current coins of the realm and a number of papers was placed into the stone beneath the foundation stone. The Rev Dean Stannus then applied a trowel full of mortar to the stone. It is clear that, at this stage, the intended designation of the hall was the ‘Lisburn Orange and Protestant Hall’ and it is this title which was engraved on the ceremonial trowel presented to Dean Stannus. The contractor was Paul McHenry of Derriaghy. (Belfast Newsletter) The hall was opened on 11th August 1870 to favourable comment by the Belfast Newsletter, “It presents a very chaste and handsome front. The style is Corinthian; the capitals of the columns are richly carved in Caen stone [much of this decoration has since been removed]. The structure is 96 feet in length and in the second story, one handsome room extends the entire length, while the ground floor is divided into eight capacious rooms, which will be used for reading-rooms and lodge-rooms for the district Orangemen. The addition of a very handsome railing in front [probably a casualty of the war effort] adds much to the appearance of the hall and is also an ornament to the street”. (Belfast Newsletter) Caretakers’ apartments were situated at the rere which could be accessed both by a hall running down the centre of the building and by a side door. Stairs from the caretaker’s hall allowed for access to the platform of the upper room without having to pass through the audience. (Belfast Newsletter) The Hall quickly became the subject of controversy, reaching both the London and Dublin newspapers in November 1871. The Freeman’s Journal and Daily Commercial Advertiser of Dublin reported that Orangemen had been absent from the opening ceremony of the hall due to the name ‘Lisburn Protestant Hall’ being placed across the front in large stone letters. The Morning Post of London added that Orangemen had succeeded in knocking the word ‘Protestant’ off the front of the building and that a ‘soiree’ had then been held for the purpose of rebaptising the building as ‘Lisburn Orange Hall’. (Freeman’s Journal and Daily Commercial Advertiser; Morning Post) As was common with public buildings of this kind a debt remained on the building after it was opened and several fund-raising bazaars were held in the year following the opening. (Belfast Newsletter, 1872) A photograph of 1921 shows the Orange Hall as it would have originally appeared, with railings to the front and additional foliate decoration to the pilasters. (Mackey, p.94) The side wall of the building is now of exposed rubblestone and brickwork, the original rendered finish having been removed. References: Primary Sources 1. PRONI OS/6/1/68/3 – Third Edition OS Map c1900 2. PRONI OS/6/1/68/4 – Fourth Edition OS Map 1921 3. PRONI OS/6/1/68/5 – Fifth Edition OS Map 1939 4. PRONI VAL/12/B/8/9A-T – Annual Revisions (1863-1924) 5. Belfast Newsletter 21st September, 1869 6. Belfast Newsletter 25th May 1870 7. Belfast Newsletter 15th August, 1870 8. Belfast Newsletter, 10th August, 1871 9. Belfast Newsletter, 12th August, 1871 10. Freeman’s Journal and Daily Commercial Advertiser 24th November, 1871 11. The Morning Post, 27th November, 1871 12. Belfast Newsletter, 17th August 1872 13. Belfast Newsletter, 16th May 1873 Secondary Sources 1. Mackey, Brian “Lisburn, the Town and its People, 1873-1973” Belfast: Blackstaff Press, 2000

Criteria for Listing

Architectural Interest

A. Style B. Proportion C. Ornamentation J. Setting

Historic Interest

R. Age S. Authenticity T. Historic Importance X. Local Interest Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance V. Authorship

Evaluation

Free-standing symmetrical single-bay two-storey pedimented Italianate rendered stone hall, dated 1871. Rectangular on plan facing west and set back slightly on the east side of Railway Street with its south side elevation fronting onto Wallace Avenue. The elaborate classical style front elevation is well proportioned and intricately detailed and with its large scale, this hall is architecturally one of the more significant Orange halls in N Ireland. The hall also has social and historic interest for the local community.

General Comments

Date of Survey

08 February 2011