25 Sentry Box Road, Ballynafoy, Banbridge, Co Down, BT32 5BD

A two-storey three-bay lobby-entry vernacular farmhouse predating 1833, located on Sentry Box Road approximately two miles south-east of Banbridge. The building retains its early character, proportion and styling, demonstrating a robust and typical example of a type becoming increasingly rare.

Architecture and Setting

The farmhouse is rectangular in plan with a windbreak porch and modern rear extensions added in 2003, which are distinct from the historic fabric and do not significantly detract from the building's integrity. It stands set slightly back from the road in a rural setting, bounded by a rubble masonry wall with squared and rounded piers supporting wrought-iron gates.

The principal east-facing elevation is asymmetrically arranged with the gabled roughcast rendered windbreak porch positioned left of centre. This porch features a timber sheeted front door flanked by diminutive sash windows. Two ground floor windows sit to the left of the porch with a single window to the right; three first floor windows are positioned directly above. The left gable contains a single narrow ground floor window.

The walling is constructed of lime-washed rubble masonry with rough cast render to the rear. The pitched natural slate roof features clay ridge tiles and stone eaves. Cast-iron rainwater goods are mounted on drive-in brackets. A roughcast rendered chimney with concrete capping rises from the roof. Windows are 6/6 timber sliding box sash with horns and granite cills throughout.

The rear elevation is asymmetrically arranged and complex in composition. A two-storey gable-ended return abutts the right side, rendered in rough cast with timber sliding sash windows. A single-storey lean-to bay with pitched roof steps down to a single-storey rear entrance porch, with iron roof-lights positioned throughout. A split rear door and single first floor window open onto the left cheek of the return. To the left of the return are three ground and first floor windows of varying sizes. The right gable contains a diminutive first floor window.

Outbuildings and Historic Setting

A single-storey rubble masonry stable block stands to the right of the main house with its gable end facing the road. It features a slate roof with vestigial lime wash and a timber sheeted door. Gravel parking bays occupy the left side of the property, with the rear garden extending into a wider rural context.

The stable block, walls, gates and piers all contribute to the historic setting of the building. The interiors were extensively modified, although the general character and layout have been retained.

Historical Development

The farmhouse appears on the First Edition Ordnance Survey map of 1833, confirming its construction before that date. At that time, the two-storey house and the single-storey barn to the north had been constructed; a second outbuilding to the south-east was also visible but was demolished between the Second and Third Ordnance Survey editions (1859 and 1902–03).

The property did not appear in the Townland Valuations of the 1830s, presumably because its value fell below the minimum threshold of £5. By 1862, according to Griffith's Valuation, the site was occupied by James Harshaw, a local farmer who held a lease from Edward Ward, the Fourth Viscount Bangor. The farm's value had risen to £5 by the 1860s and was assessed at £8 in 1869 following unknown alterations.

James Harshaw remained at the farm until his death in 1881, after which the property briefly passed to Joseph Gillespie before being occupied by Mrs. Mary Anne McCartan by 1888. When McCartan took possession, the house was described as 'old and out of repair'. She subsequently demolished a number of out-offices, including the southern outbuilding, reducing the farm's value to £5 10s. The 1901 Census recorded McCartan as a 42-year-old widow of Roman Catholic faith residing at the farm with her son and two daughters. The Census Building Return described her property as a first class dwelling consisting of seven rooms.

By 1911, McCartan's adult children assisted with farm work. The farm comprised a stable, two cow houses, two piggeries, a fowl house and a barn in the single-storey outbuilding to the north. Mary Anne McCartan remained at 25 Sentry Box Road until the end of the Annual Revisions in 1929.

The building was listed in 1977. Extensive renovation took place in 2003 when a modern extension was added to the rear.