First Trust Bank, 32-34 Ann Street, Ballycastle, Co Antrim, BT54 6AD

First Trust Bank, 32-34 Ann Street, Ballycastle

This two and a half storey terraced building on the north-west side of Ann Street in the centre of Ballycastle originally functioned as a dwelling house of pre-1834 construction. It was substantially remodelled in 1908, when the gabled half-dormers were added and the rear return was extended on a larger scale. The property was converted to bank premises around the 1980s.

The asymmetrical front elevation, which faces roughly south-east, is finished in painted lined render with a moulded eaves course. The ground floor contains a large modern shop front; to its left is a single plain sash window which appears to have replaced an original shop front belonging to number 32. The gateway to the left of this window also belongs to number 32. The first floor carries two plain sash windows with moulded surrounds. Above these are two gabled half-dormers, each containing a segmental headed plain sash window with surrounds matching those below; directly beneath the window cills is a gutter course. Moulded eaves finish the elevation.

The rear elevation is largely obscured by a large modern single storey flat-roofed extension covering almost the entire ground floor. Only a small section of the ground floor of the main building remains exposed to the far right, where a window with modern frame is visible. At first floor level, there is a window with modern frame to the left; to the right of this extends the gabled return. At the uppermost floor, a plain sash window set within a gabled half-dormer is positioned to the left, with another plain sash window at the top of the gable of the return. On the south-west face of the return, the ground floor has a metal sheeted door and a window at first floor level; the door provides access to a metal fire escape stair. The rear elevation is finished in painted render. The gabled roof is slated with a rendered chimney stack. Metal rainwater goods are present to the front, with metal and PVC fittings to the rear.

The external appearance, particularly the gabled half-dormers, initially suggests a very late 19th or early 20th century construction. A valuation entry for 1908 states the dwelling house on the site was 'rebuilt' that year. However, the survival of what appears to be early 19th century internal detailing and rubble stone walls indicates that the building was remodelled rather than newly constructed in 1908, acquiring much of its present external appearance at that date.

The building is first recorded in the 1834 valuation as a relatively old dwelling house (graded 1B, possibly dating to around 1800) with a single storey return, then in the hands of William Weir. Subsequent occupants included Catherine McKeever (1859), Reverend Patrick McAllister (circa 1870–1880), Jane Miller (1880–1883), Alexander McHenry (1883–1891), George Simms (1891–1893), Robert Halligan (1893–1897), John McBride (1897–1904), and Jane McMichael (1904–1908). John Williamson, who occupied the property from 1908 to 1926, appears to have been responsible for the remodelling of the façade and the rebuilding of the return. Later residents included Clara Boyd (1926–1941), Marion Boyd (1941–1945), Mr Smith (1945–1948), and Agnes Downey (1948–1957 onwards). The modern bank shop front and substantial ground floor alterations detract from what is otherwise a relatively well-preserved front elevation. The building is situated within a conservation area.