The Moate, 1 Moate Road, Ballyrickard, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT23 4XA

The Moate is a largely demolished single-storey farmhouse of probable pre-1834 origin, situated northeast of Moate Road, midway between Newtownards and Comber. Much of the southeast-facing facade remains discernible, featuring the remnants of a sash window to the left and a distinctive ‘Ards’ doorway (now with a modern door) centrally right, all finished in rough cast render with chamfered quoins. A sash window also survives on the northeast gable, while the southwest gable is largely demolished and overgrown with vegetation; a garden wall is attached to this gable. The rear facade is mostly gone, with a lean-to extension attached to the surviving left half, and a smaller extension with a moon-pitched roof projecting from the northeast side of the lean-to. The northeast portion of the former dwelling has been converted into a garage/store with a corrugated asbestos-covered gabled roof.

The site was marked on an Ordnance Survey map from 1834, and the building was labelled 'Moate' on a revised map from 1859-60, a name likely connected to the nearby [Iron Age] mound. Valuation records from 1863 indicate a low rateable value of £1.15.0 for the house, offices, and land. A modern two-storey house, built around the 1950s or 1960s, was constructed a few yards to the southwest by the owner’s son. A replacement dwelling in a modern style was later built on the opposite side of Moate Road after the original house was abandoned in 1987. The building is now used as outbuildings and is recorded as derelict. Originally the house had bay windows flanking the entrance, which are no longer present.