Former Factory, 42 Killysorrell Rd, Dromore, Co Down, BT25 1LB

Former Factory, Killysorrell Road, Dromore

This is a group of buildings comprising blocks of one-, two- and three-storey stone and brick structures positioned along the north-east side of the Ashfield premises, with a separate two-storey building at its northern end.

Block 1 consists of five interconnected buildings (1A to 1E). Building 1A is the principal structure: a mid-19th century three-storey, single-bay former warping mill and weaving shop. It has a pitched natural slate roof with metal roof lights to the north-east slope and brick chimneys to each gable. The walls are of roughcast random rubble blackstone with granite quoins, though the gables are stone while the side walls are brick; this brick appears contemporary with the lower section rather than a later raising. Vestiges of half-round metal gutters remain on advanced brick eaves, with cast-iron downpipes. All openings are trimmed with brick jambs and segmental brick relieving arches, with sandstone cills to windows where surviving. All ground-floor openings have been sheeted over for security, but a 6-by-5-pane cast-iron window in a timber frame is visible at the right-hand end of the south-west elevation. Identical cast-iron windows occur at first-floor level. The second floor has alternate 3-by-3 fixed windows and 3-by-6 top-opening timber windows; the latter may be replacements of shutters. The south-west elevation is 11 openings wide, all windows as described. The north-west gable is abutted by a two-storey brick building (1B), with an exposed blank section except for a brick-infilled doorway at first-floor level, now partly blocked by 1B. The north-east elevation mirrors the south-east elevation except for three doorways at ground-floor level and two at first-floor level. One of the latter is the principal entrance to the upper floors, accessed via an external masonry staircase with brick quoin and tubular metal handrail with a cantilevered jib over. The south-west gable is partly abutted by a two-storey masonry lean-to (1D), with two infilled windows to the second floor.

Building 1B is a two-storey brick structure probably added circa 1900 when the main building was converted to hemstitching. The former owner believed it contained a steam engine and boiler house powering the factory and laundry, though no chimney evidence survives. It has a pitched natural slate roof with vestiges of half-round metal gutters on advanced eaves. The walls are of dark-red handmade brick with flat heads to all openings. The south-west elevation is abutted by a later single-storey brick building (1C), and the north-west gable by a modern single-storey corrugated-metal shed. A vestige of a timber-framed window survives at first-floor level. The north-east elevation has two doors and a window to ground-floor level, all sheeted over, and three windows to first-floor level, one retaining vestiges of a 3-by-3-pane timber window.

Building 1C is a single-storey, single-bay lean-to abutting the south-west elevation of 1B. Its lighter, machine-made brickwork suggests it may be a mid-1900s rebuild of an earlier lean-to. It has a monopitched natural slate roof with vestiges of half-round metal gutters. The south-west elevation features two brick pilasters, seven 2-by-3-pane metal windows, and a doorway with a small shaft bearing housing at the right end. A wide doorway to the north-west gable is now sheeted over with a segmental brick relieving arch above.

Building 1D is a two-storey, three-bay building abutting the south-east gable of 1A and wrapping around its south-west corner, probably contemporary with the main building. It has pitched and monopitched natural slate roofing with vestiges of half-round metal gutters on advanced brick eaves. The ground floor is predominantly random rubble blackstone and the first floor mainly brick, both roughcast. The 1901 valuation statistics and window types suggest that much of the upper floor may be a later rebuild, probably in the mid-1900s. The north-east gable has a flat timber-headed doorway with a 2-by-4 metal-framed window to first-floor level, featuring a concrete head and cill. The south-east elevation has a doorway and two windows to ground-floor level, all sheeted over, and three windows to first-floor level: two are 3-by-3-pane timber, while the left window has a 3-by-4 metal frame, indicating later insertion. The south-west gable is abutted by building 1E, and has a 3-by-3-pane metal window at first-floor level. The north-west elevation has an infilled doorway at its left and a sheeted-over window with granite cill to the middle of ground-floor level, with a 2-by-4-pane metal window to first-floor level featuring a concrete head and cill.

Building 1E is a single-storey, single-bay annexe to 1D, accessed internally therefrom. A visible wall break shows it to be an addition, though it appears on the 1859 Ordnance Survey map. It has a pitched natural slate roof without rainwater goods. The walls are of random rubble blackstone and brick with advanced brick eaves and brick quoins. Windows to all elevations are sheeted over, with one retaining a sandstone cill.

Block 2, positioned at the northern end of the premises, comprises a mid-19th century former boiling room where yarn would have been prepared for weaving, possibly after bleaching. It is a two-storey, single-bay building with a pitched roof clad in natural slate to its south-east slope and corrugated metal to the north-west. Vestiges of half-round metal gutters remain on advanced brick eaves, with cast-iron downpipes. The walls are unrendered random rubble blackstone with brick quoins. All openings are trimmed with brick and have flat heads, with no cills to window openings. The south-east elevation has a large doorway to the left with a modern steel head and brick jambs, indicating enlargement of a previous opening. Ground-floor openings are buried under rising ground, though an infilled window opening is visible from inside. Two window openings and one loading door are visible at first-floor level. The south-west gable is abutted by a now-overgrown single-storey, single-bay lean-to, probably contemporary with the main building. This lean-to has a monopitched natural slate roof and rubble blackstone walls with brick quoins and a doorway to its south-east end. The remaining elevations could not be accessed due to dense ivy overgrowth. The north-west elevation of the main building is heavily overgrown with ivy, though three window openings at ground-floor level and two at first-floor level are visible from inside. The north-east gable is partly hidden by rising ground and abutted by a modern ruinous corrugated-metal shed, with an infilled window and bearing housing visible from inside.

The two blocks are situated at the east and north ends of the premises. Immediately to the west are one- and two-storey outbuildings formerly in the same ownership, with a two-storey house further west. Open fields bound the site to the north, east and south.