Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB07/09/018

Address :
60 Carnearney Road Ahoghill BALLYMENA BT42 2PL

Townland:
Casheltown

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Survey 2:
B1

Date of Listing:
22/03/2016 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:
66/16SE

IG Ref:
J0211 9951

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Owner Category

Exterior Description And Setting

Two storey, five bay gabled house and shop, built c.1850, on the Carnearney Road, which is located in the townland of Casheltown, Parish of Portglenone. The main two-storey oblong shaped building is orientated NE-SW and is set tight to the Carnearney Road along this axis, with a single-storey lean-to structure abutting the NE gable end and a shorter protrusion centred on the SE elevation; the latter faces on to a walled yard, enclosed to the NE and SW by rubble-stone and roughcast rendered walling and to the SE by a range of single and two storey white-washed stone outbuildings. Duo-pitched roof with natural slates, black clay ridge tiles and projecting eaves course rendered to match walls; red brick rectangular chimneys with yellow brick corbel brackets and diamond-shaped detail to both sides centred on gable ends (suggesting late 19th century alteration); no chimney pots; rough-dash rendered walls with traditional timber shop-front and timber sliding sash double-hung windows with exposed box frames and stone cills. The building is set on a smooth rendered base plinth and stone toothed quoins define the edges at all four corners; these are painted in a contrasting colour together with the shop-front, door frame, exposed box-frames, cills and window reveals. Principal elevation faces NW; main two-storey building to right side, with mono-pitched addition to left. To main building, five equally spaced openings at first floor, each containing a double-hung sliding sash window with 2/2 lights, regency style with margin panes, exposed box frame and stone cills. Ground floor has separate entrances for the house and shop; to left, the six-panelled timber front door (replacement) to the house has a glazed over-light, flanked by sliding sash windows and these three bays roughly align with those at first floor; to right a pair of vertically sheeted timber double doors with over-light, adjoined by a large picture window with painted boarding (that most likely reflects the window layout of three vertical panes behind) and encased by a pilastered shop-front with timber signboard projecting above both, with cornice moulding. Guttering is uPVC supported on cast-iron rise-n-fall brackets and discharging to a cast iron down-pipe on the far right side. SW gable end sits tight to the Clooney Road and is blank except for a single top-hung timber casement window at first floor, offset to the right. Roughcast rendered walls with smooth painted quoins, base plinth, and verge band; cill and window reveal as described above. Yard wall abuts right side and continues to join gable end of single-storey out-building set at opposite side of yard. Rear (SE) elevation is less formal, with two smaller timber sliding sash windows at first floor; that to left, having 1/2 lights and that to right having 3/6 lights, both off-centred to right. There is also a single storey lean-to abutment at ground floor, with a single window boarded up to right side and evidence of similar sized openings blocked up and rendered to left side. Quoins to left side, walling and roof to main building as described above; windows do not have cills. Projecting eaves course supports UPVC gutter at main roof and discharges to cast iron downpipe at far left side. Black concrete tiles to lean-to roof with projecting UPVC fascia, barge boards and rainwater goods; walls match main building; single UPVC casement windows to SE face, left side cheek is blank and right contains a sheeted timber varnish stained door (replacement). NE gable end consists of red brick chimney as described above, projecting timber barge board and soffit, painted to match quoins, and a single storey abutment that spans the full width of the building, with slate roof, single timber sliding sash window and rendered walling, which all match the main building. The corner of the lean-to is rounded on plan where it turns to meet the SE (rear) elevation in to the yard; this side contains a smaller uPVC window. Materials Roof : Natural slate (main building); black concrete tiles to rear lean-to RWGs: uPVC gutters; Cast iron, painted RWPs Walling: Rough-dash render, with smooth rendered quoins, painted Windows: Timber sliding sash, double hung with unrecessed box frames; top-hung timber casements (SW) and rear lean-to Setting Located on the NE junction of the Clooney Road and Carnearney Road at a crossroad within a rural
setting to SW of Ahoghill. The building forms part of a farmyard complex bound by approximately 2m high rubble-stone walling to the NE, which joins flush to the two-storey gable end of a range of outbuildings at the NW edge of the site; the latter step down to single storey and meet rough-cast rendered walling along the Clooney Road (SE) boundary. The outbuildings have informally arranged openings, mainly sheeted timber doors all facing in to the yard and natural slate roofs; a smaller walled enclosure is located to the NW corner. Circular (Ulster) pillars with conical caps and cast iron gates, demark the entrance to the site on the Carnearney Road. A small garden plot belonging to the house sits on the NW corner of the crossroad facing the building; it is entered from the roadside through a single cast iron pedestrian gate with fluted gate posts that lead to an arch formed within the lower branches of mature yew trees; the other two corners have open green space with low level hedges and fencing.

Architects

Not Known

Historical Information

A building matching the position and footprint of the present house / shop is shown for the first time on revised OS map of 1857, along with a block matching the southern section of the outbuildings. This is recorded in the Second Valuation of 1861 as a two-storey house in good repair measuring 11 x 6 yards with two single-storey returns – one 5 x 2 yards and the other 6 x 2 yards, all graded 1B (ie ‘having slated roofs, of medium age, slightly decayed’ ), with the outbuildings noted as comprising three single-storey structures of 5 x 4 yards, 5 x 4? yards (1B) and 9 x 4? yards (all graded 1B but with the latter thatched) and a two-storey section of 7 x 6 yards classed 1B+ (i.e. ‘medium age and in sound order’). All of the above information indicates that this is the same collection of buildings we see today, and, judging from details such as the margin-paned window frames, may have dated from c.1850. In 1861 the occupant is recorded as a Joseph Hillis, with The O’Neill Estate (of Shane’s Castle) the lessor. Joseph’s family appear to have been longstanding in the vicinity, as the neighbouring house to the west in marked ‘Hillistown’ on the 1857 map; it is likely, therefore, that he or a close relative was responsible for its building. The Valuation Revision dated 1873 notes that a David Hillis is noted as the tennant of the various parcels of land surrounding Joseph’s plot. The property possessed a rateable value of £5 in 1861, but by 1864 this had risen to £6, and reached £7-5-0 by 1884, all of which suggests that the current north-western range of outbuildings was built in stages during these years (they are shown on the 1902 OS map). In 1886 the tenancy had passed to Mary Jane Hillis. In the 1901 census she is noted as the head of household. The building itself is listed as a first class dwelling with a shop, having eight rooms to serve a family of six, whilst within the yard were six out offices. In the 1911 census, however, the use is noted simply as ‘private dwelling’, with the number of rooms increased to ten and the number of out offices, (which included a stable, cow-house, calf-house, piggery, fowl house, barn, turf house, potato house and shed), increased to nine. As the footprint of the buildings is the same on the 1902 and 1921 OS maps, we can only conclude that the increase in the amount of rooms reflects internal re-ordering rather than the addition of any extensions. Mary Jane Hillis acquired the freehold from the O’Neill estate in or just before 1922, and was still the occupant in 1929. The Hillis family appear to have retained the property until at least 1969, as Georgina Hillis is noted as the owner / occupier in that year. The shop must have closed at some time prior to 1963, as there is an annotation in Valuation Revision that year to change the description from H, S, Os & L (House, Shop, Offices and Land) to H, Os & L. This concurs with information provided by local residents, who advised that the crossroad is known as Hillis’ Corner. They also advised that the shop was a general merchant's store, which sold household goods (food and sweets), hardware and burial shrouds and was closed by the 1960s. References Primary sources 1. PRONI, Griffith’s Valuation VAL 2B/1/67/A 2. PRONI, Ordnance Survey 6-inch map, 1830 – OS/6/1/36/1 3. PRONI, Ordnance Survey 6-inch map, 1853 – OS/6/1/36/2 4. PRONI, Ordnance Survey map, 1902, OS/6/1/36/3 5. PRONI, Ordnance Survey map, 1921, OS/6/1/36/4 6. PRONI, Valuation Revision Books, 1860-1930, VAL/12/B/3/23A-E 7. 1901 and 1911 census returns (consulted online) www.census.nationalarchives.ie

Criteria for Listing

Architectural Interest

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

Historic Interest

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

Evaluation

Two-storey five bay simple gabled house and shop with rough-cast rendered walls, red brick chimneys, natural slate roof and a range of outbuildings to the rear, built c.1850 and set on a prominent crossroad at the junction of the Carnearney and Clooney Roads, SW of Ahoghill. The name of the architect is not known but this is a well-proportioned building with a semi-formal composition that suggests it was designed in a deliberate style. Double-hung sliding sash windows with exposed box frames, stone sills, toothed quoins and an authentic Victorian shop front add significant character to its frontage whilst the interior retains its original plan form and good quality historic fittings. To the rear, an intact walled yard and whitewashed outbuildings serve as a reminder of the farming activity associated with the adjoining house. Ulster pillars and a pair of cast iron gates add further interest to a somewhat rare surviving example of a corner shop within a rural setting. Opposite, a garden plot belonging to the house is entered via a cast iron pedestrian gate set into an arch formed at the base of yew trees that further enhance its setting.

General Comments

Date of Survey

26 November 2015