Beech Hill, 19 Derriaghy Road, Derryaghy, Lisburn, County Antrim, BT28 3SQ

Beech Hill is a detached two-and-a-half-storey roughcast rendered house built circa 1830–1840, located on a large site north of Derriaghy Road, east of Derriaghy town centre. The building retains many design features of its period and some original external fabric. The layout appears unchanged from its original form.

The complex comprises a symmetrical central two-and-a-half-storey block aligned east–west, abutted north and south by one-and-a-half-storey perpendicular single-bay returns. A further two-storey block extends northward, built circa 1830, aligned east–west with a continuous outshot to the south. The north elevation is attached to an L-plan two-storey multi-bay outbuilding enclosing the north boundary.

The roof is pitched natural slate, except for the central two-and-a-half-storey block which is hipped. Painted bargeboards are supported on exposed timber corbels with decorative timber finials. Four rectangular roughcast rendered chimneystacks with single clay pots crown the gables of the north and south one-and-a-half-storey returns. Rainwater goods comprise painted ogee-profile cast-iron, with cast-iron downpipes largely intact. The walling is roughcast rendered with stepped rendered quoins, moulded sill courses and cornice. Windows are painted 1/1 timber sliding sashes with horns, contained within square-headed openings with moulded architrave and projecting concrete sills.

The symmetrical two-and-a-half-storey block faces east and is abutted by a smooth rendered single-storey porch with lean-to natural slate roof supported on exposed timber rafters. The porch is flanked by a single window on each side, with a tri-partite window at first floor surmounted by a horizontally extended dormer to the hipped roof. The entrance comprises a double-leaf glazed timber door with leaded transom light, contained within moulded architrave; each cheek contains a 1/1 timber sliding sash with leaded lights.

At the south, the two-and-a-half-storey block is abutted by a one-and-a-half-storey single-bay return. The exposed section contains a single window at ground floor and two windows at first floor. The one-and-a-half-storey return south elevation contains two windows at ground floor surmounted by a multi-paned timber wall-head dormer with lean-to slated roof; the south gable has two diminished windows at first floor without moulded architrave. At the north, the two-and-a-half-storey block is abutted by a one-and-a-half-storey single-bay return with a blank exposed section. The one-and-a-half-storey return south elevation is abutted by a single-storey flat-roof extension containing a double-leaf timber glazed door at ground floor, surmounted by a multi-paned timber wall-head dormer with lean-to slated roof; the north gable has a continuous outshot of the lower two-storey block.

The west elevation of the central two-and-a-half-storey block contains a large modern timber casement at ground floor and two closely spaced windows at first floor. The one-and-a-half-storey single-bay return to the left has two windows; that to the right is blank. The east gable is detailed as the south block, with stepped quoins and moulded architraves; it contains two windows at ground floor and a single window at first floor.

The attached two-storey block to the north, built circa 1830, is plainly detailed with a plain timber eaves board and half-round rainwater goods. The west elevation contains a replacement timber glazed door at the left, now functioning as the principal entrance. The north elevation is abutted to the left by a higher two-storey L-plan outbuilding. The exposed section to the right contains three windows at ground floor (that at right diminished in height) and two windows at first floor.

The outbuildings to the north form a two-storey L-plan with irregular fenestration. The north–south aligned block has a west elevation abutted off-centre to the right by a lean-to entrance porch with tiled roof, flanked by a double door to the right and a timber half-door with transom lights and small timber casement window to the left. Five unequally spaced windows of varying sizes occupy the first floor. The south elevation contains two diminished windows at ground floor and a single window at first floor. The east–west aligned block has been closed from the large forecourt to the west by construction of a boundary wall and appears to have been refurbished.

The western forecourt is enclosed from Derriaghy Road by a tall splayed rendered blockwork wall with square piers. Roughcast rendered walling encloses the remainder of the site along Derriaghy Road. A former pedestrian entrance comprises square ruled-and-lined rendered piers with pyramidal caps supporting double-leaf cast-iron gates bearing a 'Beechhill' plaque; this access is no longer in use. A large garden lies to the east.

The building appears on the first Ordnance Survey map of 1832–3, situated west of Milltown in a rural area dotted with farmhouses. The building assumes much the same plan form as today, with a main house and outbuilding parallel to each other. In Griffith's Valuation of 1856–64, the farm is listed as the property of Robert Christian, and the 18-acre plot is leased from the Marquess of Hertford. The house and outbuildings are valued at £3 10 shillings. The farm is first captioned 'Beech Hill' on the fourth edition Ordnance Survey map of 1920–1. In recent years, the area south of the farmhouse has been developed into housing estates, but the wider rural setting of the farm remains largely unchanged. The building is historically interesting as the arrangement of blocks indicates development of the former rural site, although the site is now largely surrounded by modern housing. Despite this interest, it is not considered to be of sufficient quality to merit listing.