Drumskee House, 81 Black Skull Road, Banbridge, Co Down, BT25 1JN

Drumskee House is an asymmetrical multi-bay two-storey rendered former farmhouse built around 1820, located at the end of a long shared lane to the north of Blackskull Road in the townland of Drumskee. The rectangular building faces east and survives as part of a substantial early nineteenth-century farmstead that includes a collection of brick outbuildings.

The main house is constructed of rubblestone walling with lime render, lime-washed finish. The pitched roof is covered with natural slate and fitted with four ruled-and-lined cement rendered chimneystacks and replacement metal guttering. The square-headed window openings have timber lintels and flush sills. The asymmetrical east front elevation displays generally early timber sash windows with exposed sash boxes—some eight-over-eight, some two-over-two, and some later two-over-two horizontally glazed examples. A square-headed door opening contains an original flat-panelled timber door with bolection mouldings, iron door furniture and a rectangular overlight with coloured glass, opening into an enclosed front garden. Some casement replacements exist to the rear and south elevations.

The multi-bay west rear elevation has original six-over-six timber sash windows and timber casement windows, with a central square-headed door opening with early sheeted timber door accessing the cobbled rear yard. A rendered entrance porch with pitched slate roof adjoins the north gable.

The south gable is abutted by the remains of a single-storey former dwelling, now roofless, which exposes a redbrick wall. Partially demolished, this structure originally formed part of the farmstead.

The rear cobbled yard is enclosed by three substantial outbuildings. To the north stands a three-bay two-storey stone and redbrick outbuilding abutting the rear elevation, featuring gauged brick round-headed openings, a corrugated iron roof, a flight of external stone steps to the upper level and timber sheeted doors. A redbrick screen wall with an elliptical-headed brick carriage arch abuts the west end of this outbuilding at the northwest corner of the yard. A further two-storey stone and redbrick outbuilding lines the west side of the rear yard. The south side is enclosed by a three-bay single-storey redbrick outbuilding with a hipped natural slate roof, square-headed door openings with timber sheeted doors and tripartite overlights.

The early appearance of this vernacular dwelling is due to the survival of much early fabric including sash windows and lime render. It is representative of a disappearing vernacular building type. Although significant in the locale, insufficient fabric survives to merit formal listing, and other, better examples are already listed.

Historical Context

The current dwelling is shown on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1834 as a rectangular structure with return, with an outbuilding to the rear and a further house or outbuilding to the west. The Townland Valuation of 1828–40 lists these structures as two dwellings. One was occupied by Sarah, then Robert Hynes, the other by Edward Parkinson, then Joe McMullan, valued at £3 17 shillings and £4 2 shillings respectively. The records give dimensions for a thatched house 13½ feet in height with four thatched outbuildings, and a slated house 15 feet in height with two thatched outbuildings.

By the second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1858, further outbuildings had been added, forming three sides of a stable courtyard to the rear. The large brick and rubble outbuilding with attached arched gateway does not appear on this map but is listed in Griffith's Valuation of 1863, giving it a construction date of around 1860. A 'Brick Field' is noted nearby on the 1860 Ordnance Survey map, which likely provided construction materials for these structures.

Griffith's Valuation of 1863 records Joseph McMullan as occupier of the main house, valued at £18. A subsidiary dwelling on the site, now gone, was occupied by Robert Hynds. In 1887 the farmhouse passed to John Clenaghan, then Thomas Newell in 1889. By 1894 the house was described as 'very old and out of repair', and the valuation was reduced to £15.

The 1901 census records Thomas Newell, farmer, and his wife Sarah, resident with their nephew and his wife and their eight children. A servant, 55-year-old 'Mairy' Cairns, was employed at the house. The ten-room dwelling was designated first class and had eleven outbuildings including a stable, coach house, cow and calf houses, piggery, fowl house, boiling house, barn, turf house and potato house.

In 1916 Thomas Newell became the owner in fee of the house under the Land Purchase Acts. The farm then passed to Samuel Carson, one of Newell's young nephews, and was revalued in the First General Revaluation of 1933–34 at £10 and £7 15 shillings for agricultural outbuildings. The accommodation at that time comprised four bedrooms, three rooms, a kitchen, pantry and scullery.

In recent years a new farmhouse was built to the north of the site and the older house has fallen into disuse. The outbuildings were used as a laundry in the mid-twentieth century.