'Craig's', 57 Castle Street, Ballycastle, Conty Antrim, BT54 6AR

Craig's is a two-storey terraced building on the south side of Castle Street, to the west of Ballycastle town centre. Originally built as a house, probably in the 1740s as part of Hugh Boyd's development of the town, it was modernised and extended in the late 1950s, when the ground floor was converted to a shop. Beyond the possible survival of the original roof structure, the building as it stands is essentially a product of the mid to later 20th century.

The north-facing front elevation is asymmetrical and finished in painted plain render. To the left of centre is a modern shopfront with a glazed door and large plate glass picture window; to the right is a similar window. Spanning the full width above the ground floor openings is a plastic signboard with raised lettering to the centre. At first-floor level are two widely spaced windows with modern timber frames. All the front openings appear to date from the late 1950s. To the rear, a very large, roughly L-shaped, flat-roofed extension — modern in appearance — covers most of what was formerly an open yard and links into a former outbuilding to the south. The rear façade of the main section is finished in painted roughcast and contains an enlarged window with a PVCu frame to the far left, a doorway with a mainly glazed modern timber door, and a very small PVCu-framed window to its right. At first-floor level there are three windows, all with PVCu frames. The main section has a gabled, slated roof; the chimneystacks have been removed. Rainwater goods are a mix of cast iron and PVCu.

The building's history is well documented through valuation records. A house matching the dimensions of the main section — recorded as 33 feet by 26½ by 21½ feet, with a cellar measuring 16 by 13 by 6 feet — appears in the first valuation of January 1835, where it is already described as 'old', suggesting an 18th-century origin. This is consistent with the tradition, reported by the present occupant, that the building once served as the house for the gaoler of the gaol held within the neighbouring former court and market house, itself likely dating from the mid-18th century. Since later records make no reference to demolition or major structural change (other than the extension and alterations to the windows and doors), it is reasonable to conclude that the fabric recorded in 1835 substantially survives.

In 1835 the property was occupied by 'The Misses McCook' and included a stable and forge to the rear measuring 40 by 18 by 10½ feet. By the second valuation of late 1859, this outbuilding had been replaced by three separate structures — two measuring approximately 5½ yards by 6 feet (single storey) and one measuring 11 by 6 feet (single storey) — though whether these were used as outbuildings, workshops or dwellings is unclear. The main building was noted to be in 'bad repair' at this date, with Hector McNeill recorded as occupant and John and Daniel Christie as immediate lessors; the two smaller rear buildings were vacant, with the lessors themselves using or occupying the largest structure.

Subsequent tenancies passed through several hands: Robert McKillop took over the main building in 1867; lodgers are recorded from 1876; John Mitchell held the tenancy from 1895 to 1929, and from 1913 held all parts of the property, at which point the main building was described by valuers as in a 'wretchedly dilapidated state'. By 1929 three occupants are recorded — Mary Russell, Henry Hamilton and John Lamont. By 1935 William Hamilton occupied the main building, with William Johnston renting a slaughterhouse to the rear and Benvento Bertucelli renting offices and a garden to the rear. In 1951 the lease of the whole property passed to Daniel Stewart, and then to Alexander Stewart a few years later. The present owner acquired the property in the late 1950s and subsequently converted much of the ground floor to a shop and added the large rear extension.

The property lies within a conservation area.