The Manor House, Greenmount College, 22 Greenmount Road, Muckamore, Antrim, Co Antrim, BT41 4PX

The Manor House at Greenmount College is a substantial country house standing in extensive grounds in a rural setting. The building comprises three distinct sections: an original two-storey, five-bay sandstone house in classical style; a later two-storey, five-bay basalt wing in neo-Georgian style from the 1920s; and a modern two-storey rendered end block of plain character.

Main House (Original Section)

The main house is of sandstone ashlar construction with a hipped roof of Bangor blue slates laid in regular courses with terracotta ridge tiles. A single red brick chimney with moulded stone cornice and modern pots rises on the right-hand side. The principal west-facing entrance elevation displays sophisticated classical detailing: the end bays rise to shallow pediments and contain Ionic pilastered canted bay windows at ground floor level, connected by an iron balustrade running at first floor level. Panelled pilasters mark the extremities of the main façade and the pedimented bays. The walls feature a low projecting plinth, platband, modillion cornice and blocking course. Cast iron downpipes serve concealed gutters.

The entrance portico consists of four unfluted Ionic columns with Ionic responds at each end, sheltering a pilastered doorcase in reconstituted stone. The central doorway contains a pair of rectangular timber double doors, glazed and panelled, with similarly glazed and panelled sidelights. The glazing is two-paned with margins; the panels are octagonal with fluted fans to the corners. Modern handles and lock have been fitted. A sandstone flagged doorstep extends the width of the portico. The balcony balustrading above is wrought iron in neo-classical style, appearing to be work of the 1920s.

The windows are rectangular timber sliding sashes, vertically hung, with horns. The ground floor bay windows have one-over-one sashes, whilst the first floor end bays above contain 12-over-two coupled windows, and the first floor central bays have nine-over-two windows. Modern glass globe lamps on metal brackets are affixed at each end of the first floor.

At the northern extremity of the main house, the entrance façade returns briefly before the basalt wing extends. This return walling is smooth cement rendered, lined and blocked, with the sandstone plinth, platband, blocking course, cornice, and pilaster all returning from the front elevation.

The north elevation of the original house shows the hipped roof slated as on the entrance front, with walls of smooth cement render, lined. A cast iron gutter and downpipe serve the elevation, which has one first floor window: a rectangular timber sliding sash, two-over-two with horns.

The rear elevation of the original house varies between two and three storeys in height, with a roof comprised of three hips, slated as on the entrance front. Three red brick chimneys with projecting plain stone cornices and stone caps, fitted with short stub pots, rise from the roof. The walling is mainly roughcast render, with a projecting eaves course and a projecting panelled sandstone pilaster with modillion cornice at the left-hand extremity, returning from the south elevation; the right-hand portion of wall is smooth rendered. Windows are mainly rectangular timber sliding sashes, four-over-four with horns, set in plain reveals with projecting concrete sills, though there are also timber casements and top-hung vents. Cast iron gutters and downpipes serve the elevation, whose appearance is marred by an attached steel trough carrying cables across the first floor level.

Projecting forward from the right-hand end of the rear elevation is a lower two-storey rear return or wing which then turns southward to form a courtyard. This has a slated roof and roughcast rendered walls, with a flat roofed two-storey addition. It features original timber sashed windows, later versions, and modern metal fixed lights and casements.

Extending to the left-hand side of the rear elevation is a single storey height screen wall of whitened rubble stone construction, mainly roughcast rendered, linking with a single storey wing of roughcast outbuildings to enclose the rear yard. The outbuilding has ledged timber doors, a slated roof and metal rainwater goods.

The south elevation of the main house is two storeys with a slated roof as on the entrance front. One red brick chimney matches those on the rear elevation. The walls are smooth rendered and lined, with projecting rendered plinth, painted sandstone platband, and panelled sandstone pilasters to the extremities with sandstone modillion cornice and blocking course. A cast iron downpipe serves this elevation. The windows are rectangular timber sashes, 12-over-two with horns, set in plain reveals with projecting white-painted concrete sills.

A single storey porch has smooth rendered and lined walls, white painted timber framed glazing on painted sills, a rectangular panelled door, moulded timber cornice, moulded cast iron gutter, and a later synthetic slated lean-to roof and cheeks. The west face of the screen wall projecting forward at the right-hand extremity is rendered with wet dash containing small blackstone chippings, with concrete coping. The gable of the adjoining single-storey outbuilding has a rectangular timber sashed window, two-over-two with horns. The southern elevation of this single storey outbuilding is blank, with roughcast finish, slated roof and a tall roughcast chimney.

1920s Basalt Wing

The 1920s neo-Georgian wing is built of roughly coursed basalt rubble with later reticulated cement pointing. It has a raised sandstone platband and frieze. The centre of the façade rises to a shaped pediment containing a semi-circular window and two sandstone urns of abstract design. The roof is of Bangor blue slates in regular courses with dark toned ridge tiles and concealed gutter behind the parapet. Four cast iron downpipes with small plain hoppers serve this section.

On the entrance (west) front, the ground floor windows are rectangular timber sliding sashes, vertically hung, six-over-six with horns, in exposed sash boxes, set in plain reveals with segmental headed flat arches containing a sandstone keystone. The first floor windows are timber nine-pane horizontally pivoted windows with segmental heads and unusual segmental sills. The central bay has a rectangular timber sliding sash, six-over-six with horns, surmounted by a radial fixed fanlight, set in a semi-circular arched sandstone surround, recessed in a semi-circular arched basalt opening with sandstone keystone and imposts. A projecting sandstone balcony with wrought iron balustrading of stripped classical design incorporating miniature cast iron urn finials serves this window. The entrance in the ground floor below is a rectangular timber four-panelled door, raised and fielded, with narrow two-pane sidelights and a six-pane rectangular fanlight, recessed in a rusticated sandstone surround with flat arch to the head and unusual oval sandstone mouldings to the base. This opening was originally a window, with the bottom now lowered, including the oval mouldings.

The rear elevation of the 1920s basalt wing is of similar character and materials to the entrance front but without the pedimented feature. Cast iron downpipes match those on the entrance front. The central doorway contains a similar doorcase to the entrance front but set in a plain opening with segmental headed flat arch and sandstone keystone. It has modern metal ironmongery and two concrete steps. Two windows to the right at ground floor are sashed as on the entrance front. At first floor level above the doorway is a central large semi-circular arched window in similar recessed surround to the entrance front, with two windows to the right matching those on the entrance front. First floor walling to the left of the central window is blank; ground floor to the left of the central doorway is covered by a projecting single storey curved bay.

This single storey curved bay has a conical slated roof with glazed rooflights. The smooth rendered walls are lined and blocked, divided into broad rectangular recesses, with a pair of recessed rectangular timber double doors, small paned, with modern metal handle. A moulded gutter with cast iron downpipes serves this bay.

Modern End Block

The end block has smooth rendered walls, lined, with a slightly raised platband and frieze. The windows are rectangular metal fixed lower lights with top-hung upper lights set in plain unmoulded reveals with projecting concrete sills. A cast iron downpipe matches those of the 1920s wing. The roof is continuous from the 1920s wing, hipped at the extremity. The north end and rear elevation of the end block are of similar character to the west elevation, with the addition of a canopy over the doorway: a poor quality plywood fascia soffit on a pair of rolled steel joists.

Setting and Grounds

The building stands in a rural area at the centre of extensive grounds and agricultural land, laid out with lawns, flower beds, mature trees and shrubs in the immediate vicinity of the house. It is approached by a tarmac driveway which ends in a tarmac area in front of the entrance. To the rear stand rendered outbuildings of no architectural interest grouped around two yards. To the north-east is a detached basalt house of 1920s date. To the south is a detached flat roofed hostel and dining room college centre, the Boyd Building, built in 1961, of no special merit or interest. To the south-east is the original walled garden containing a new conservatory in Victorian style, in progress of being built in mid-2000. To the east is the original stable yard, with two basalt houses of 1920s date further to the east flanking each side of the rear driveway.

To the north is an extensive wooded area containing ornamental ponds, with original late 18th or early 19th century garden and estate structures in the vicinity.

Ice House

To the north-east, close to the house and immediately north of the second rear yard, stands an early 19th century ice house. It has a Tudor arched entrance in brick with brick lined and paved approach passage. The brick domed inner chamber is covered on the outside with an earthen mound, grassed over and surrounded by trees. A sandstone shield over the entrance to the passage is inscribed with the initials of Robert Thompson. The inner opening leading into the inner chamber is closed by a metal grille.

Rustic Arch

Immediately to the north of the ice house at the east end of the adjacent pond stands a free-standing segmental arch of rough hewn and split stone, in the rustic manner of the 'picturesque movement' in British garden design. It is much surrounded by overgrown leafage.

Garden House

Well to the west of the ponds, reached by a woodland walk and standing on a slight eminence surrounded by trees, is a roofless and ruinous arrangement of basalt and brickwork walls. This comprises an octagonal main chamber with a smaller circular chamber at one end reached through a Gothic arched opening. The exterior of the circular chamber is harled, whilst the interior is lined with smooth render.