56-58 Main Street, 'Ramages Centra', Bushmills, Co. Antrim, BT57 8QA

56–58 Main Street, Bushmills — formerly known as Ramage's Centra

This is a two-storey, three-bay, smooth-rendered and painted end-of-terrace building, originally constructed as a dwelling between 1834 and 1855, most likely around 1840. It occupies a corner plot on the east side of Main Street at the junction with Woodvale, on the north-east side of Market Square, in the centre of Bushmills village. It sits within the Bushmills Conservation Area.

The building has an L-shaped plan. The roof is naturally slated with a pitched profile. There are two chimney stacks centred on the ridge: one of unpainted render to the north-west side, and one of squared basalt with strap pointing to the south-east side. External walling throughout is of line-marked rendered painted finish.

The principal elevation faces south-west and is three bays wide at first floor level. At ground floor, a timber shopfront spans almost the full width, divided by replacement timber pilasters with signage above. A single entrance doorway is centred on this elevation, fitted with a pair of panelled timber doors and a transom light over. At first floor, three equally spaced bays each contain 6/6 timber sliding sash windows with moulded plaster architrave surrounds, all painted in a contrasting colour. Painted rendered toothed quoins appear to either side of the front elevation.

The south-east side elevation forms the gable end facing onto Woodvale. It has painted quoins and is set on a painted rendered plinth. To the rear of this elevation, two window bays appear on both ground and first floor levels, with moulded rendered architrave surrounds painted in a contrasting colour. Ground floor windows are 8/8 timber sliding sashes and first floor windows are 6/6 timber sliding sashes. At attic level there is a small window with a semi-circular arched head containing a 1/1 timber sliding sash window with horns. This south-east elevation extends north-eastward towards a large car parking area, where at ground floor there is a series of shopfront-style windows and at first floor timber casement windows. The end bay at this level has a wall dormer to attic level with a timber casement window and moulded rendered architrave surround.

The north-east elevation faces onto the supermarket car park. Walling here is smooth render without line markings, and the fenestration is irregular: three doorways at ground floor level, four unevenly spaced window bays at first floor level, a single window bay at half-landing height to the right side, and a single large window at attic level. The gable end is topped by a small painted rendered chimney stack with a single circular buff-coloured clay pot. This elevation rises to three storeys at the gable end and steps down to a flat-roofed two-storey section with a tubular steel balustrade to the parapet.

The north-west side elevation faces onto an amenity area within the car park. It is of smooth rendered painted finish and is entirely blank. Rainwater goods throughout are uPVC.

Historical background

Bushmills was a significant settlement before the end of the 18th century, but from the 1820s the village was extensively rebuilt by the MacNaghten family of Bushmills House, who had acquired the estate in 1787. Nos 56–58 Main Street was not recorded on the Townland Valuations Town Plan of around 1834 or in the contemporary Townland Valuations of around 1835, but was most likely erected around 1840 in connection with the laying out of Market Square and the construction of the second bridge across the River Bush. It was first recorded with certainty on the second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1855 and in the contemporaneous Griffith's Valuation.

Griffith's Valuation of 1859 recorded the building as initially valued at £17, leased by the MacNaghten family to William McMullan, a local shopkeeper. McMullan continued to reside there until his death in 1860, when the property passed to a Mr Robert Anderson. In the 1870s the premises were occupied by Lyle Taggart, a local grocer who operated a shop from the building. The Taggart family continued to occupy the site until the 1920s. The Ordnance Survey Town Plan of 1902 depicted the building in its L-shaped layout, and the 1901 Census of Ireland described it as a first-class shop and dwelling consisting of 14 rooms, with extensive outbuildings to the rear including a stable, coach house, two cow houses, a piggery, barn, and a store.

The Taggart family vacated the site around 1921, when Robert King, a local merchant and auctioneer, took possession. King had purchased the site outright from the MacNaghten estate by the time of the First General Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1936–57), which increased its rateable value to £50 and noted its use as a shop and petrol refilling station. Following King's death in 1958, the premises were occupied by James Ramage, who maintained the shop and petrol filling station. By the end of the Second General Revaluation (1956–72) the total rateable value stood at £72.

In 1972 the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society's guide to North Antrim described the buildings along Main Street in general terms as forming a well-scaled street with many good doorways and shopfronts, noting that while no individual building other than the former Courthouse merited specific mention, the unity of the street frontages should be maintained.

The building was listed in 1980 and subsequently included in the Bushmills Conservation Area, which was designated in 1992 to preserve the built heritage of the village — an area that contains the highest number of listed buildings in the north-east of Northern Ireland.

Alterations and current condition

In 1988, the building underwent renovation including the replacement of its windows with new sliding sash frames, the addition of a new entrance door, and the construction of a new shopfront. In 2004, the mid-19th-century building was almost completely demolished in order to modernise and extend the interior floor space of Ramage's grocery store. The original front and south-east side elevations were retained and incorporated into the new supermarket as part of a façade retention scheme; all other original fabric, including all outbuildings, was lost. The original floor plan and all internal historic fabric and detailing has therefore been lost. A large extension was added to the rear, including a large flat-roofed section. In June 2005, listed building consent and planning permission were granted for the refurbishment of the existing listed building, removal of outbuildings, and extension of the retail premises.

As a result of this extensive reconstruction, the building does not retain sufficient architectural or historic interest to be considered special, and it was delisted on 2 June 2017.