Straid House, 2-4 Main Street, Straid, Co Antrim, BT39 9NE

Straid House is a detached two-storey five-bay house built around 1840, situated on the east side of Main Street in Straid village facing south. Despite remodelling over time, the original plan form and external ornamentation largely survive. The building is representative of early commercial development in the village, though the loss of original windows has diminished its character, and better examples of this common house type exist elsewhere.

The house is rectangular on plan with a two-storey return to the north-west and further extensions to the north-east. A one-and-a-half-storey outbuilding stands at the south-east corner. The pitched roof is covered in natural slate with crested clay ridge tiles. Rainwater goods are uPVC, supported on modillions at the eaves. Corbelled brackets at the gable ends support plain bargeboard to the west and decorative bargeboard to the east. The rendered chimneys to the gables and centre have masonry caps and shallow cylindrical terracotta pots.

The walls are ruled-and-lined rendered below the first-floor cill course, with roughcast above, and quoins throughout. The principal elevation is five windows wide, with square-headed timber casement windows featuring moulded architraves with corbels to the sides and cill course, and foliated keyblocks to the centre. The principal entrance is offset to the left, comprising a panelled door with fanlight and sidelights recessed in a moulded elliptical-arched opening with keyblock. A shop front occupies the right side, featuring a central modern entrance door with windows either side, divided by staged pilasters paired at either side of the entrance, with fascia and modillioned cornice above. Cast metal light fittings are positioned between end windows at first-floor level on the east and west sides. The west gable has two replacement uPVC windows at first floor. A chamfered corner below the quoins runs to north and south.

The rear elevation has a two-storey return at the right and a series of extensions to the left, including a single-storey flat-roof extension adjoining the left elevation of the return, followed by a two-storey extension and single-storey lean-to with cat-slide roof. The exposed section shows two plainly detailed windows to the first floor. The east gable is abutted by a range of one-and-a-half-storey outbuildings set perpendicular to the house. The return faces east and is three windows wide, with pitched artificial tiled roof detailed as the main house. Windows are as the main house with smooth rendered pointed-headed architraves and masonry cills, with three windows to each floor. An original roughcast round pillar with conical cap abuts the north corner. The north gable has one window to the east at ground floor. The east elevation has a replacement timber-sheeted door and is abutted by a single-storey flat-roof extension, with three windows to the first floor. The two-storey extension has a pitched slated roof with plain bargeboards and chimney to the west side, detailed as the main house. At ground floor on the north elevation is a replacement uPVC window in a plainly detailed segmental-headed opening. This is abutted to the east by a single-storey lean-to extension with windows to each elevation at first floor. The lean-to has a timber-sheeted door to the north and is abutted by a storey-and-a-half rendered outbuilding to the east.

The site is bounded to the north and east by single-storey and two-storey outbuildings. A rendered boundary wall and hedge bound the west and south sides. The property is accessed at the west through square pillars with pointed caps supporting cast iron gates, and to the rear via rendered round pillars with conical caps.

Historical records indicate that a small rectangular building appeared on the site in the first edition Ordnance Survey map, with the surrounding area vacant. The second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1857 shows significant development in the village, and the building appears in its current form. The Townland Valuation Fieldbook of 1836 records that the property was re-measured in 1859. The revised record names Mary Wilson as the owner, who operated a "public and grocery shop", with the building valued at £6 11s 0d. Griffiths Valuation in 1859 records a house, shop and office occupied by Mary Wilson, with the Marquis of Downshire as immediate lessor. The building was valued at £15 5s.