Mile post, [next to 50 Frances Street], Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3DY is a Grade B2 listed building in the Ards and North Down local planning authority area, Northern Ireland. First listed on 13 March 2002.

Mile post, [next to 50 Frances Street], Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3DY

WRENN ID
dusted-porch-fen
Grade
B2
Local Planning Authority
Ards and North Down
Constituency
Strangford MP: Jim Shannon (DUP)
Country
Northern Ireland
Date first listed
13 March 2002
Irish grid reference
J 492 741
Coordinates
54.5935, -5.69227
Source
NI Environment Agency listing

Also on this page: radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

This is a cast iron milepost dating to circa 1817. Located next to number 50 Frances Street, Newtownards, it is a significant example of industrial archaeology and holds local, social, cultural, and economic importance. The milepost has a domed top and displays moulded lettering indicating distances to Belfast (8 miles) and Donaghadee (6 miles). The structure is generally in good condition but would benefit from repainting; the original colour scheme may have been black lettering on a white background. The milepost likely dates from around 1817, coinciding with the opening of the new coach road from Belfast. Supporting historical information is documented in W.A. McCutcheon’s 'The industrial archaeology of Northern Ireland', Trevor McCavery’s 'Newtown: a history of Newtownards', Fred Hammond’s "Communications in Co. Down", and J.T. Fulton's PhD thesis 'The roads of Co. Down 1600-1900'.

Local climate

Mile post, [next to 50 Frances Street], Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3DY sits in a wetter-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 1,130 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 88% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 93% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 1 freeze-thaw cycle a year, fewer than 99% of listed buildings. Of these, 1 follows at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.2°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

Sign in or create a free account to unlock:

  • No EPC on record for this property
  • No sale records on file
  • No related consent applications matched
  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
  • No flood data for this area
  • Radon risk assessment
  • Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
Create free account

Matched applications, energy data and sale records are assembled automatically and may contain errors. Flag incorrect data.

Nearby listed buildings

  1. 52 Frances Street, Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3DY Grade Record Only 1 m
  2. 54 Frances Street, Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3DY Grade Record Only 5 m
  3. 50 Frances Street, Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3DY Grade Record Only 8 m
  4. First Presbyterian Church, Frances Street, Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3DY 28 m
  5. House, (near 7 East Street), Newtownards, Co Down, BT23 3E? 55 m
  6. 31 Frances Street, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT23 3DW Grade Record Only 93 m
  7. Old Cross Bar, 4 Castle Place, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT23 3JF Grade Record Only 117 m
  8. Old Market Cross, Castle Place, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT23 3JF Grade Record Only 129 m
  9. 44 High Street, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT23 3HZ Grade Record Only 147 m
  10. 43 High Street, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT23 3HS Grade Record Only 170 m