Masonic Hall, Antrim Road, Templepatrick, Co. Antrim, BT39 0AH

Masonic Hall, Antrim Road, Templepatrick

A detached, symmetrical, two-storey Masonic hall built around 1920, located to the south of Antrim Road on an elevated site. The building is designed in free classical style with a pitched gabled roof and retains almost all its original architectural features despite modern additions to the east and south elevations.

The hall is rectangular on plan with a pitched roof featuring overhanging eaves and exposed roof rafters. The masonry walling is finished with ruled and lined stucco. The north gable elevation has a fascia with exposed rafters and banded rustication below the string course. The central entrance is marked by two oculus windows with leaded star motif positioned either side, with a keystone and label moulded round hoodmould. Three segmental headed windows occupy the first floor, with the left and right windows featuring shaped aprons to the cill. A central Masonic cartouche is positioned at the apex. Corner pilasters extend to the roof and plinth.

The principal entrance door is a single-leaf hardwood door with eight panels, the two lower panels being larger, finished with bronze door furniture. Above is a semi-circular fanlight etched with a Masonic cipher showing compass and square. The door is reached by three steps and is surmounted by a segmental broken pediment supported on pilasters flanking polished granite colonnettes supporting an archivolt and keystone.

The east elevation has an ashlar stucco finish with pilaster and rustication below the string course on the north side. The ground floor contains a single window with flush keystone and chamfered edges. A replacement hardwood door on the left side replaces an original window, creating a large square fanlight, with the original chamfered window surround remaining.

The south elevation has a single window to the left at first floor and a replacement door to the right, accessed by a metal stair on a concrete plinth. A small flat roof extension adjoins the south-east corner.

The west elevation is divided into four bays. The north bay has rustication below the string course with a single window above. Each of the remaining bays has a ground floor window, with the north bay window being a smaller 1/1 sliding sash.

Windows throughout are timber sliding sash, predominantly 2/2 configuration. Rainwater goods consist of cast iron half-round gutter and round downpipes.

The building sits towards the rear of an elevated plot overlooking Antrim Road and is accessed through original pillars with pillar caps and rendered S-plan walls. A random rubble wall encloses the front boundary.

The hall holds social significance within the local community. It is associated with Antrim Lodge No. 28, a Masonic lodge whose origins trace to lodge No. 529, which exchanged its number for No. 160 in 1824. This number was transferred to Templepatrick in 1826. The Grand Lodge of Ireland was established before 1725 in Dublin, with the earliest Provincial Grand Lodge in Northern Ireland formed in 1834 by Rev. Brother Walter Bishop Mant, Archdeacon of Connor.