4 Coastguard Cottages, Helen's Bay, Bangor, Co. Down, BT19 1JY

4 Coastguard Cottages is a two-storey, mid-terrace, red brick former coastguard cottage, one of a terrace of nine, built in 1856 on the south shores of Belfast Lough to the west of Helen's Bay. It was built by Lord Dufferin of Clandeboye Estate, most likely to designs by the architect Benjamin Ferrey, under the supervision of Lord Dufferin's agent, Mortimer Thomson. Unusually for the period, its construction was not entrusted to the Board of Public Works, which was responsible for most coastguard building in Ireland at the time. Lord Dufferin took an active personal interest in the appearance of buildings on his estate and chose to retain greater control over the design and execution of the work than the standard Board of Public Works process would have permitted. As a result, the cottages lack the defensive features such as gun loops found in many Board of Public Works coastguard stations, and are finished to a noticeably higher architectural standard than comparable buildings elsewhere.

The building is gabled, two storeys in height, and two bays wide, square on plan with a single-storey return to the rear. The roof is pitched and covered in natural slate, with raised stone gables and two brick chimneystacks fitted with decorative terracotta pots. The walls are laid in Flemish bond red brick, enriched with decorative yellow and black tiles set in 'V' and 'X' patterns, with a tiled course at ground floor level. There is a shared niche to the left with a pointed timber arch. The overhanging eaves are of sandstone with red brick corbels, and rainwater goods are cast-iron half-round guttering with drive-in brackets and hoppers.

The principal elevation faces north and is slightly recessed, a single opening wide. It is reached by two stone steps, and the entrance consists of a timber boarded door to the left beneath a pointed arch leaded transom light with a timber lintel. Windows are timber replacements that open on a hinge. The east elevation is abutted by the adjoining cottage. The south, or rear, elevation has a single window opening at first floor level; the ground floor is entirely abutted by a modern extension containing a gabled entrance bay with double-leaf timber door, flanked by single window openings and skylights to the roof. The west elevation is abutted by the other adjoining cottage.

The cottage is reached by a long private lane to the north-west of Craigdarragh Road, Helen's Bay. Facing north, the terrace enjoys uninterrupted views over Belfast Lough and direct access to the beach. There is a large communal lawned garden to the front, partially bounded by mature trees to the north and accessed from the east through a decorative cast-iron gate. To the rear, each cottage has a private garden and car parking.

The history of the building is unusually well documented through surviving correspondence in the Dufferin Estate Papers. Before leaving for London in January 1856, Lord Dufferin left his agent Thomson with specific instructions requiring the station to be finished by 1 May 1856 and stipulating the use of jet black bricks or, if these could not be obtained, recessed devices to be filled with coloured tiles so that his design intentions could still be achieved. He further instructed that bricks in the main part of the building be carefully selected for uniformity of colour, and that the grounds to the front be levelled, grassed, and planted with trees.

In April 1856, Thomson reported back that work was progressing and that, although coloured bricks and tiles had not initially been available and the devices had been recessed ready to receive them, the tiles had since arrived. He expressed hope that jet black brick could be sourced from Limerick. By July 1856, three houses were occupied and the remainder were expected to be complete by early August. It also emerged that two additional houses, originally intended to be let as bathing lodges, were taken up by the coastguard authorities, who had issued instructions to double the force at every station.

The question of the tile and brick detailing apparently remained partially unresolved. In March 1868, Lord Dufferin wrote from Grosvenor Square suggesting that instead of finishing the coastguard houses with tiles, the empty spaces might be filled with a sanded board to imitate brick. This comment appears to relate to the arches over the doors and windows, which have indeed been finished with wood.

The station was originally known as Clandeboye Coastguard Station, a name it retained until at least 1890, when it became known as Helen's Bay Coastguard Station. Lord Dufferin maintained an ongoing connection with the station and its crew for many years, and surviving letters show coastguard personnel appealing to him for personal assistance in securing employment for family members and requesting his influence to avoid transfer to other stations. In 1879, crewman Thomas Nester wrote to Lord Dufferin reminding him of a promise of help made when Dufferin had sailed to Constantinople aboard HMS Melpomene with Captain Hewitt, and asking him to use his influence to prevent a transfer that would have forced Nester's children to leave their trades in Belfast.

In 1898 the Dufferin Estate Office remained involved as landlord in the maintenance and development of the cottages, with correspondence referencing probable costs of improvements and additions from the Board of Works and a local builder named Kerr. It appears to be at this point that the rear returns were added to the cottages. The station is shown on the second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1858, captioned 'Coast Guard Station', with a flagstaff and boat house also marked. Griffith's Valuation of 1856–64 lists the Coast Guard Station as occupied by the Board of Admiralty and leased from Lord Dufferin, with buildings valued at £34 10s.

The 1901 Belfast and Province of Ulster Street Directory records the crew of Clandeboye Coastguard Station as: John Pring, chief boatman; boatmen Palmer, Pinwell, Mackay, and Purdy Kerr; and coastguards McEwan, Telint, and Robertson. By 1907 the crew listed under the Helen's Bay name comprised Henry Brunsen, chief boatman; boatmen T. Dickson and T. Dingley; coastguards T. Seagrove, A. White, and M. Gunning; and station master James Thompson.

By 1925 the building was no longer in use as a coastguard station. A letter survives in which a Mrs John Murry appealed directly to the then Prime Minister Sir James Craig for one of the houses, stating she had been told that a word from him would secure it. The Prime Minister's office referred her request to the Ministry of Finance for sympathetic consideration.

A rear extension was constructed around 1980, with a garage and garden room added to the rear garden around 1983. Internal alterations, replacement windows, and further alterations to the rear extension were carried out in 2003. The property remains in residential use.

The primary purpose of the coastguard during the first half of the 19th century was the prevention of smuggling to protect government revenue, with lifesaving not becoming an official function until 1922, though many rescues were carried out regardless. In 1893, the Helen's Bay coastguard were involved in rescuing the crew of the schooner Clans of Chester, which had become stranded in the bay. The Coast Guard in Ireland was established in 1822, and by 1824 stations had been established along the entire coastline. The main contraband at the time was unprocessed tobacco, heavily used by working people but subject to high taxation. Crews in Ireland were often regarded as representatives of the Crown and attracted political hostility in addition to the general unpopularity of the coastguard among local communities. It was considered inadvisable for them to mix too closely with local people, and purpose-built accommodation on station was eventually provided as a result. In 1856 the coastguard was transferred to the Admiralty, its functions redefined to include serving as a coastal defensive force and naval reserve. Responsibility for coastguard buildings then passed to the Board of Public Works, and a second phase of station building followed, most designs being the work of E. Trevor Owens, brother-in-law of the architect Charles Lanyon.

Thomas McKnight, editor of the Northern Whig, observed in a discussion of the Irish land question that Lord Dufferin had spent comparatively more on his estate than perhaps any other Irish landlord of his means had done on theirs, and that the houses he built for the coastguards and for workpeople around Clandeboye were in a style far superior to similar buildings on the estates of much larger landlords.

The building is noted as retaining substantial architectural interest in terms of its style, proportion, ornamentation, and plan form, although some alterations to the facade in recent years have detracted from its character. Its historical interest lies in its authorship, its local significance, and its social, cultural, and economic importance.