35 Rowreagh Road, Gransha, Kircubbin, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT22 1AR

This is a much-extended, two-storey, hipped-roof Victorian farmhouse, likely dating from around 1860 to 1870. It’s situated on the side of Rowreagh Road, a few miles south of Kircubbin, County Down. The front elevation has been altered with a modern door and PVC windows, which detract from the original appearance.

The front, or south, elevation features a central glazed door with plain sidelights and a three-pane elliptical arch fanlight, with a ‘dog’s tooth’ transom positioned between the door and fanlight. There are two-pane PVC windows to the left of the door, one to the right, and three similar windows on the first floor. The west gable of the main house has a window similar to the one on the front elevation, on the ground floor, with a single window above. The east gable has a similar arrangement, except the ground-floor window is a timber sliding sash and case window and is further to the right. The east gable seamlessly merges into a large rear return, which also has a hipped roof. This return features a porch/‘conservatory’ to the left with two sets of double sliding sash and case windows to the right, and a further single sliding sash and case window to the far right. There are four sash and case windows on the first floor of the return. The rear of the main house and the west elevation of the return have a collection of PVC windows mirroring those on the front. A tall, flat-roofed extension, with a plastic oil tank on top, is attached to the west elevation of the return. The rear of the return includes a double sliding sash and case window on the first floor, a smaller single sliding sash and case window, and two modern timber doors on the ground floor, with one being partly glazed. The entire facade is finished with a Tyrolean render and a chamfered plinth. Chamfered quoins are visible on the front, east, and rear of the return. Yellow brick chimneys with dentilled corbelling are present on the main house and the return. The building has PVC gutters and downspouts. Recent farm buildings are located to the rear.

Historical records, including an Ordnance Survey map from 1834, show various buildings on the site, with one appearing to correspond to the location of the present return. The main section of the farmhouse was likely built around 1860, with the older structure either largely rebuilt to form the return or potentially demolished and the return constructed in its place. According to information provided by the owner in 1997, the return may have been built by a local sea captain named Maxwell, although the exact date of its construction is unknown.