Old Mill House, 47 Craigdarragh Road, Helen's Bay, Bangor, Co Down, BT19 1UB

Old Mill House is a well-preserved, multi-bay, two-storey house built in the mid-19th century (between 1840 and 1859) as part of a flax mill complex. It stands north of Craigdarragh Road, west of Helen's Bay, in the townland of Ballyrobert, and is accessed by a private lane through a mature and attractive site. The building is constructed of basalt rubble and brick, and its architectural and historical interest lies in its style, ornamentation, plan form, the quality and survival of its interior, its setting, and its group value as part of a wider mill complex.

ARCHITECTURE AND APPEARANCE

The house is rectangular on plan, with a projecting two-storey canted Regency bay window to the front elevation, a two-storey and single-storey return to the rear, and a brick extension to the west forming part of the main block, dated 1956. The roof is pitched and covered in natural slate, with a hipped roof over the bay window, terracotta ridge tiles, and clustered brick chimneystack with terracotta pots. Tall brick chimneystacks rise from the rear return. Cast-iron half-round rainwater goods sit on overhanging eaves.

The walling is basalt rubble and Flemish-bonded red brick throughout, with the exception of the Regency bay to the front, which is finished in smooth render. Windows are multi-paned timber-frame side-hung casements set in brick dressings, some with timber transoms and mullions. Those to the ground floor have segmental arch heads; those in the central bay are set into simple reveals with projecting masonry sills. At first floor level, the window heads reach up to eaves level.

The principal elevation faces north-west and is two openings wide on either side of the central bay. To the left of the central bay, a number of openings have been bricked in. To the right is the 1956 brick extension, which has two windows to the ground floor, a single window to the first floor, and a single opening to the exposed section. Also to the right at first-floor level is a rendered square plaque inscribed "H : M G 1956", recording the initials of the previous owners who commissioned the extension. The entrance is reached by two stone steps and has a multi-paned timber-frame door set in a brick surround.

The north-east gable end has a central first-floor window and two ogee arch recesses to the ground floor, both bricked in and each containing a window. The south-east elevation has two window openings in the gable of the return; an exposed section to the left with three first-floor windows and a timber door at ground level; and is abutted to the right by a garage. The south-west gable of the main block has a single opening at both ground and first-floor level.

INTERIOR

Although the interior detailing is plain, it is well-preserved, and any modern finishes are sympathetic to the character of the original structure.

SETTING

The house sits in a mature site with a large lawned and wooded garden to the front and a large walled kitchen garden to the west, though the kitchen garden is no longer in use. The private lane from the main road leads around the front of the building to the west, where single-storey brick outbuildings with segmental-headed openings and timber-sheeted doors line the lane. Access to the rear yard is through a timber gate. The entire site is bounded by basalt rubble walling and mature hedgerow and trees.

HISTORY

The building forms part of a complex established as a flax mill. It is first shown, uncaptioned, on the second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1858. The Griffith's Valuation of 1856–64 records the entry as a "steward's house, flax mill, offices and land", forming part of the estate of Craigdarragh House. At that time, Robert Francis Gordon occupied Craigdarragh House and owned the mill complex, which was leased from the representatives of Robert S. Kennedy and valued at £75 for buildings. The valuation records dimensions for a house, flax mill, and numerous outbuildings including a stable, cow house, and two piggeries. Specifications are also given for the steam flax mill, which had a 10 horse power engine, 12 stocks, and 1 set of rollers. It operated for four months of the year, twelve hours a day, with a threshing machine worked at the same time. The valuer also noted that there was an oil mill on the site, but that it "cannot be worked with the above machinery".

In 1863 the mill became the property of Lord Dufferin and Clandeboye, who had also taken over Craigdarragh House. By 1872 the flax mill was noted to have "burned down", and the valuation was consequently reduced to £40. In 1882 the steward's house was deleted from the record and the plot was redeveloped, with new buildings described as "in progress". By 1883 the site had been divided into three separate properties, valued at £45, £11, and £9 respectively, and let as separate tenancies. The boundaries between the different houses appear to have been somewhat fluid at this stage and the valuation records are not entirely clear, but it appears that what is now Fairholme House and its neighbour to the south-west was then a single property valued at £45 and let to Margaret Hill; what is now Mill Cottage was valued at £9 and let to David Patterson by 1887; and the current house was valued at £11 and let to the Hartley family — first to a Miss Hartley and then to Robert M. Hartley. The properties were by then leased from Thomas Workman of Craigdarragh House.

From 1900, Thomas Workman is listed as the occupier of all three houses, and from this point the houses appear to have been let largely to relatives or associates of the Workman family. In 1907 the valuer recorded that an extension had been built to the rear of the current house, described as outbuildings in nature, raising the valuation to £19 10s. The occupier at that time was J. L. Yeames — James L. Yeames, a marine engineer — and the lessor was Thomas Workman, though part of the house was occupied by a labourer rent free. James L. Yeames was a nephew of the artist W. F. Yeames RA (1835–1918), who painted And When Did You Last See Your Father? He had married Thomas Workman's daughter, Jane Service Workman, in 1901. Jane Service Workman (1873–1949) was a landscape and interior painter who assisted her father in illustrating his published work on Malaysian spiders. She exhibited at numerous venues including the Paris Salon in 1901 and the Royal Academy in 1903, though she is not represented in any public collections.

By 1933 the property was known as Old Mill House and was occupied by Jane Yeames, leased from Craigdarragh Estates Limited. At that time it comprised seven bedrooms, three reception rooms, a kitchen, scullery, pantry, and bathroom. The house had electric lighting and a water supply from Helen's Bay, and was recorded as free of rent, the valuer noting it was "family estate". The valuation was raised to £70 and then reduced to £64.

In 1935, following an appeal, the valuer commented: "Very old type semi-detached residence in good position. Long rambling house, very badly planned, small rooms, low ceilings (coved 1st floor). Hardly worth two storeys. Damp. Old style fittings… Extensive well-laid out grounds. Probably too large for type of house." The valuation was consequently lowered to £64. In 1936 and 1937 improvements were recorded, particularly to the bathroom, though no change was made to the valuation, at which point the house was described as being in excellent repair.

In 1938, following a further appeal, the valuer gave a detailed account of the accommodation. On the ground floor: a hall and long back corridor with flagged floors, a well-fitted bathroom, a cloak cupboard, a long dining room with bay, a large reception room, a library, a pantry, and a kitchen with a red tiled floor and an Aga cooker, together with a scullery and larder. On the first floor: a maid's bedroom with a separate staircase over the scullery and pantry, four small bedrooms, a nursery over the dining room, and two large bedrooms with coved ceilings. An enclosed yard and outside WC were at the rear. Sundry outhouses included two motor houses. The valuer observed: "The main staircase to 1st floor at back of house is a very poor affair and quite unsuitable for a house of this size. The house appears to have been originally part of a mill or factory building. The main disadvantages are bad plan, flagged floors to hall and corridor, poor main staircase and poor bedrooms with lavatory accommodation on ground floor. The property generally is in very fair condition of repair but there is evidence of dampness in several rooms, probably the walls are without dpcs." He also noted the attractive, old-world appearance of the house and its "very fine garden at side, also large walled in garden at rear. Secluded situation off main road to Helen's Bay." The valuation was subsequently reduced to £60.

Jane Service Workman continued to occupy the house until her death following an accident in 1949.

Old Mill House is a distinctive building that forms part of an important group with the other buildings in the mill complex. Both individually and as part of this group, it contributes significantly to the historic character and the industrial and architectural heritage of the surrounding area.