Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB19/03/038

Address :
Bessvale 63 Ballinderry Road Lisburn Co. Antrim BT28 2NW

Townland:
Moneycrumog

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Survey 2:
B+

Date of Listing:
14/10/1975 00:00:00

Date of De-listing:

Current Use:
House

Former Use
Thatched House

Conservation Area:
No

Industrial Archaeology:
No

Vernacular:
Yes

Thatched:
Yes

Monument:
No

Derelict:
No

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OS Map No:
164/3

IG Ref:
J1791 6628

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Owner Category

Private

Exterior Description And Setting

A T-shaped house constructed in three levels. The roofs that are thatched between tiled gables have wrap-over ridges and eaves cut at an angle. The valley between the roofs is slated. Three rows of scollops are exposed at the ridge and one at the eaves. The external finish is of whitened roughcast. The farmyard is approached by a long driveway that proceeds southwards for a third of a mile off the road from Upper Ballinderry to Lisburn just over a mile from the former hamlet. The front elevation that faces north-east is exposed as single storey overlooking a lawn entered by modern metal gates hung on square pillars with projecting pyramidal caps. The associated enclosing wall is of similar construction. Each gable of this elevation rises to a chimneystack with moulded capping and two Victorian style pots. The entrance fronted by two tiled steps is placed to right of centre. The six panel raised and fielded door under a small segmental roughcast arch is flanked on either side by a 6/6 vertically sliding window with exposed framing. Only that on the extreme left is provided with sash stops and sills are of intermediate depths. The side elevation of the front block presents a three-storey appearance to the street. The attic is lighted by a 2x2 casement with sill of intermediate depth, below this a rear bedroom on the first floor has a 6/6 vertically sliding window with sash stops and sill of traditional depth and on the ground floor the parlour is provided with a 4/8 vertically sliding window with sash stops and sill of intermediate depth. There then occurs a two storey thatched return terminated by a tiled parapet that rises to a chimneystack similar to those serving the front section of the house. It is set back from the gable of the front block. Entry is by means of a timber sheeted folding centre hinged door into the former kitchen that has a 6/6 vertically sliding window with sash stops and sill of traditional depth to the right. Above each of these openings there occurs a 6/6 vertically window without sash stops and with sill of intermediate depth. Beyond this a single storey lean-to structure has been added lighted by a 6/6 vertically sliding window with sash stops and sill of traditional depth on the street face. The elevation (south-west) that overlooks the farmyard has an eight panel raised and fielded timber door flanked to the right by a pair of 6/6 vertically sliding windows with sash stops and narrow sills. The side elevation of this unit is lighted first by a 4x4 casement with a sill of traditional depth followed by a 6/6 vertically sliding window with sash stops and sill of traditional depth. This part is roofed with natural slate hipped as it extends toward the inner courtyard and utilising red clay hip tiles. The return of the main house has a vertically sliding window with sashes divided into two horizontally and with sash stops. The sills are of intermediate depths. From the left at upper level the rear elevation has a 6/6 vertically sliding window with sash stops and a sill of intermediate depth and then a 4/4 vertically sliding window with sash stops and a sill of intermediate depth. Below this window there is a 2x2 casement with the top two panes top hung. The adjoining gable is lighted by a pair of two pane casements each with one side-hung opener.

Architects

Historical Information

This house is shown, much as present, on the OS map of 1832 / 33 and marked as ‘Bess Vale’. The valuation book of 1834 notes the occupant as one Jonathan Hill with the dwelling recorded as a relatively old thatched building in good condition (quality letter ‘2B+’). The dimensions are given as 52ft x 21½ x 11, 20 x 21½ x 14½, with thatched ‘offices’ (i.e. outbuildings) of 10 x 21½ x 5½ and 80 x 17½ x 6½, a thatched barn of 53 x 20 x 7½, a slated shed of 11 x 20 x 6 and a part ‘open’ relatively newly-built thatched potato house of 40 x 17 x 6. The valuers remark upon the property was being ‘neat’, with its rateable value calculated at a very respectable £9-6-0 On the revised OS map of 1857 the house appears unchanged, however the outbuilding to the west has altered shape and there is a new outbuilding to the south of this. The second valuation of 1862 lists these changes, recording the presence of slated outbuildings of 21 x 11 x6, 19 x 18 x 6 and 11 x 21 x 12, thatched ones of 45 x 18 x 6 and 36 x 20 x 7, as well as the barn and potato house already mentioned in 1834. The appearance of these new structures probably helps explain the rise in the rateable value to £12. Jonathan Hill [?or a relative of the same name] was still in residence in 1859, remaining there for another decade when he was succeeded by Robert Hill, who acquired the freehold from the Wallace Estate in 1893. Robert Hill remained there until 1911 when the house was bought, [?or passed to], John Tuft, whose descendant still holds the property. The post 1864 valuations record no changes to the dwelling. It is clear from the first valuation of the 1830s that Bessvale was a building of some age at that point. Pierce and Coey, writing in 1984, state that the house ‘reputedly’ dates from ‘about 1700’, whilst Brett, writing in 1996, states that it is ‘almost certainly 17th-century’ but cites no evidence, (dendrochronological or otherwise), to support this. He also states that the house was occupied by a Hugh Casement in the mid-18th century and later by a family named Higginson, but again no evidence is offered. Henry Higginson, however, is recorded as holding land in Moneycrumog on a Conway Estate map of 1729 and a house indicated in the townland on John Lendrick’s 1780 ‘Map of the County of Antrim’ is listed in the legend as the home of a Rev. Mr Higginson.* The latter could be Thomas Higginson, or either of his sons, Edward and Thomas Edward Higginson, all of who were clerics, the first two serving as Vicars of Ballinderry, but whether the house on the map is actually Bessvale or not is uncertain. Returning to more recent times, the possibility of using plastic thatch was proposed by the owner in 1975, however the existing covering was repaired with straw the following year, with further repair work using straw carried out in 1978, 83 and 87. Emergency repairs in 1992 saw the use of straw on the main house and rye on the return. Flax was used for a complete re-thatch in 1994. [*The fact that Bessvale appears to be the largest house in this townland on the 1832 / 33 OS map suggests that it might well be the house shown on Lendrick’s map of 1780.] References- Primary sources 1 PRONI D.427/4 Hertford / Wallace Estate Papers- ‘A Survey of part of the estate of the Hon. Francis Conway in Ye County of Antrim & Kingdom of Ireland by I.S.[John Sloan] Anno 1729’ (1729) 2 Linen Hall Library ‘A Map of County Antrim from actual survey', by J. Lendrick (1780) 3 PRONI VAL/1A/1/63 OS map, County Antrim sheet 63, with valuation
references (1832 / 33-c.38) 4 PRONI VAL/1B/167 First valuation, Ballinderry (1834) 5 PRONI VAL/2A/1/63A OS map, County Antrim sheet 63, with valuation references (1857-c.59) 6 PRONI VAL/2B/1/55A Second valuation, Ballinderry (1859) 7 PRONI VAL/12B/8/1A-E Annual valuation revision books, Ballyscolly ED (1864-1929) Secondary sources 1 Brett, C.E.B., ‘The Buildings of County Antrim’ (Belfast, 1996), p.215 2 McCorry, Francis X., ‘Journeys in County Armagh and Adjoining Districts’ (Lurgan, Inglewood Press, 2000), p.73 Other references 1 Reports and corrospondence in EHS file since date of listing. 2 EHS Survey of Thatched Buildings, report by Colin Hatrick to EHS, 1992 3 EHS Monitoring of Thatched Buildings, report by Colin Hatrick to EHS, 18 May 1994 Thatching Record Summary. The possibility of using plastic thatch was proposed by the owner in 1975. A repair scheme involving patching of the thatch was completed in 1976 using straw. Further work was carried out by James Dickson in 1978 using straw. A further scheme was completed in 1983 by Gerry Agnew using straw. Repair of the thatch was completed in 1987 by Gerry Agnew using straw. Emergency repair of the thatch was carried out by Brian Douglas, Sligo, in 1992 using flax on the main house and rye on the return. Gerry Agnew used flax to complete re-thatching in 1994.

Criteria for Listing

Architectural Interest

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

Historic Interest

W. Northern Ireland/International Interest Z. Rarity

Evaluation

General Comments

Date of Survey

09 November 2000