Ardstraw Presbyterian Church, Deerpark Road, Ardstraw, Newtownstewart BT78 4LL

Ardstraw Presbyterian Church

This austere mid-Victorian gable-fronted Presbyterian church dates to 1862 and stands as a free-standing stone building set back on the west side of Deerpark Road, surrounded by a bitumac car park. A gabled community hall built in 1978 stands to the south. The church has undergone major refurbishment including a new roof and ceiling, but retains its original fenestration and outward appearance. Renovation works have resulted in the loss of much internal joinery and the front door; however, the original gallery and its pews survive, as does the impressive semi-circular pulpit, both of which allude to the original scheme and its quality. The loss of original soft landscaping and internal alterations diminish the building's architectural interest.

The rectangular church on plan is five bays deep with a pitched artificial slate roof featuring synthetic ridge tiles and felt-covered verges. Random coursed squared rough-hewn sandstone walls with chamfered sandstone ashlar to the plinth and openings sit beneath projecting rendered eaves with replacement steel rainwater goods.

The front gabled elevation faces east and is three windows wide. A moulded cement cornice sits below the verge with a Lombardy frieze beneath. The walling is coursed rubblestone with cement pointing, rusticated stone quoins, and a projecting stone plinth course. A roundel plaque states "Founded Before 1656, Rebuilt In 1863". A central pointed-arched door opening features deeply splayed cut stone moulded reveals with a keystone and replacement double-leaf vertically-sheeted hardwood doors with leaded coloured glass overlight. The entrance is flanked by a pair of windows with a further window above.

The pointed-arched window openings throughout are formed in chamfered ashlar stone with keystones and stone sills. The Y-tracery masonry window frames have a single transom with cast-iron quarry glazing, coloured glass margin lights, and weather glazing.

The south nave elevation is five windows wide with rough-cast rendered walling, rusticated stone quoins, stone plinth course, and a cement rendered eaves course. An impost moulding spans the elevation. The north nave elevation mirrors this arrangement. The gabled rear elevation is abutted by a flat-roofed extension with a pair of truncated lancet windows above and pair of vents to the roof space, rendered in rough-cast with rusticated stone quoins. A further pointed-arched pedestrian entrance to the west is set into a rendered wall filling a gap in the terraced houses of Carnkenny Road. The bitumac surface covers the entire site, enclosed to the road by a replacement concrete wall and steel gates.

Historical Context

A Presbyterian Meeting House has been present in Ardstraw since at least 1695. Ardstraw and Urney were the first two Presbyterian churches in the area, although the exact date of Ardstraw's founding remains uncertain. Ardstraw itself occupies an ancient religious site: a monastery was founded here in the 6th century, and in the early 13th century it served as the head of a diocese, later united with Derry. The ancient burial ground survives close to the present church.

The current building was constructed in 1862 during the ministry of Reverend Leslie Lyle, on the site of the previous meeting house. A "Meeting House" is captioned on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1833. The current building appears as a "Presbyterian Church" on the third edition map of 1905. The previous building is listed in the Townland Valuation (1828–40) as a Presbyterian Meeting House and yard, valued at £7 8 shillings. Griffith's Valuation of 1859 records it at £12 15 shillings, with 5 shillings for the land. The lessor was Reverend Matthew Clarke, Minister from 1821 to 1861. Annual revisions do not reflect the construction of the new church until 1934, when the valuation increased to £60 and the occupiers are listed as the Trustees of Ardstraw Presbyterian Church in fee.

The church provides seating accommodation for approximately 580 people, including gallery seating, with an average Sunday congregation of 150. It has central heating. A 1934 valuer's report describes it as a "very fine church" and notes that a disused hall over stables existed to the south-west, with a committee room in Black's house. The church underwent extensive renovations in 1956, the late 1970s, and in 2006.