Survey Data
Reg No
15610003
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Artistic, Historical, Social
Original Use
Rectory/glebe/vicarage/curate's house
In Use As
House
Date
1875 - 1885
Coordinates
314670, 152023
Date Recorded
08/06/2007
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Detached three-bay two-storey Church of Ireland rectory, completed 1880, on an L-shaped plan centred on single-bay single-storey gabled projecting open porch to ground floor; single-bay (west) or three-bay (east) two-storey side elevations. Occupied, 1901; 1911. Sold, 1989. Restored, 2001. Hipped slate roof on an L-shaped plan with roll moulded clay ridge tiles extending into lichen-covered clay ridge tiles, paired red brick Running bond central chimney stacks having corbelled stepped stringcourses below capping supporting yellow terracotta octagonal pots, and replacement uPVC rainwater goods on rendered slate flagged eaves retaining cast-iron octagonal or ogee hoppers and downpipes. Rendered walls. Square-headed central door opening with timber mullions on step threshold supporting timber transom, and concealed dressings framing timber panelled door having sidelights on panelled risers below overlight. Square-headed window openings with cut-granite sills, and concealed dressings framing one-over-one timber sash windows. Interior including (ground floor): central hall retaining carved timber surrounds to door openings framing timber panelled doors, and moulded plasterwork cornice to ceiling; dining room (west) retaining carved timber surround to door opening framing timber panelled door with carved timber surrounds to window openings framing timber panelled shutters on panelled risers, and picture railing below moulded plasterwork cornice to ceiling; drawing room (east) retaining carved timber surround to door opening framing timber panelled door with carved timber surrounds to window openings framing timber panelled shutters on panelled risers, and picture railing below moulded plasterwork cornice to ceiling; staircase hall (north) retaining carved timber surrounds to door openings framing timber panelled doors, staircase on a dog leg plan with trefoil-perforated timber balusters supporting carved timber banister terminating in finial-topped fluted timber newels, and carved timber surrounds to door openings to vaulted landing framing timber panelled doors; and carved timber surrounds to door openings to remainder framing timber panelled doors with carved timber surrounds to window openings framing timber panelled shutters. Set in landscaped grounds with cast-iron colonnette piers to perimeter having polygonal capping supporting wrought iron-detailed cast-iron gate.
Appraisal
A rectory representing an important component of the later nineteenth-century built heritage of Ballycanew with the architectural value of the composition confirmed by such attributes as the compact plan form centred on a restrained doorcase; the slight diminishing in scale of the widely spaced openings on each floor producing a feint graduated visual impression; and the high pitched near-pyramidal roof. Having been well maintained, the form and massing survive intact together with substantial quantities of the original fabric, both to the exterior and to the interior where contemporary joinery; and sleek plasterwork refinements, all highlight the artistic potential of the composition. Furthermore, an adjacent coach house-cum-stable outbuilding (----) continues to contribute positively to the group and setting values of a self-contained ensemble having historic connections with the Ballycanew parish Church of Ireland clergy including Reverend William Fielding Wilkinson (1864-1942), 'Clergyman [and] Rector' (NA 1901); Reverend James Napier Clarke (----), 'Rector in Church of Ireland' (NA 1911); and Reverend George Gibson Bolton (1872-1934).