79 Lisburn Road, Ballymote TD, Glenavy, County Antrim, BT29 4NX

79 Lisburn Road, Ballymote, Glenavy

A single-storey vernacular dwelling of hearth-lobby plan type, pre-dating 1830 (constructed between 1800 and 1819), with three bays and an adjoining store. The building is located at the crest of a short lane off Lisburn Road on its south side, approximately one mile south-east of Glenavy, in County Antrim.

The roof comprises corrugated tin laid over thatch, with sawn rafters and unsawn purlins; some original thatch remains visible beneath. The chimneys have been removed. The walls are constructed of exposed field stone with an upper brick course; lime render is largely eroded. Cast-iron rainwater goods are present, though much has been removed.

The principal north-west-facing elevation is asymmetrically arranged. A shallow-pitched stone-slab-roofed windbreak porch, constructed of lime-rendered brick walling, is positioned left of centre, with small window openings to either side of the cheeks. The main elevation has one window to the left of the porch and two windows to the right; the store entrance is to the far right. The left gable is blank. The rear elevation is asymmetrically arranged with various window openings, and the right gable has a single window. The windows are remnants of timber sliding sash and casement types, including 1/1 sashes and 6-pane casements, generally in very poor condition with frames only surviving. The timber-panelled front door survives only partially, in very poor condition.

Although the building's style and proportions remain largely intact, the loss of most original windows and other original detailing significantly detracts from its character.

The house is set on a secluded site at the end of a lane flanked by hedges and overgrown vegetation, climbing to a hilltop. A small yard lies to the front, containing a small two-storey barn with red brick surrounds and a slated roof, situated to the east, and a dilapidated corrugated tin shed to the north. The broader setting is open rural landscape. The site lies between the 100-foot and 300-foot contours, within the better arable land of the district; land below 100 feet is subject to winter flooding, whilst land above 300 feet runs to pasture, furze, and rough grazing.

Historical context

The parish of Glenavy comprises a low-lying fertile agricultural area to the east of Lough Neagh. The 1832–3 first edition Ordnance Survey map shows the area dotted with cottages and farmsteads. The district has remained predominantly agricultural to the present day. Lewis's topographical survey of 1837 notes that "the soil is well cultivated, and there is very little waste land or bog." A quarterly fair in Glenavy town dealt principally in horned cattle and pigs; additional income came from cotton and linen industries, with a large cotton mill and flax spun and woven in cottages. The second half of the nineteenth century saw rural population decline as people drifted to Belfast, leaving older generations to work the farmland. This dwelling is an example of the hearth-lobby type prevalent throughout central and south-west Ulster.

The house appears on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1832–3 but was not listed in the Townland Valuation of the same year, likely because it fell below the valuation threshold. No outbuildings are shown on the earliest edition, though a small square structure appears opposite on the 1858 edition; by the third edition of 1901–02, this is shown as a rectangular building corresponding to the surviving stone outbuilding.

By Griffith's Valuation of 1862, the house was occupied by Robert Sloane and sat on a 12-acre plot. Sloane leased the farm from the Marquis of Hertford (later Sir Richard Wallace); the house and outbuildings were valued at £1 10 shillings. In 1894, Robert Sloan became the owner in fee, most likely under land purchase legislation of the period. The 1901 census lists James Robert Sloan, a 48-year-old farmer, as occupier, unable to read or write and living alone. By 1911, Selena Hamill, a 75-year-old widow, also illiterate, had taken over the house; she lived with her son, a farmer, and her nine-year-old niece. The 1901 and 1911 census returns confirm the house was roofed with thatch or other perishable material, in common with the majority of houses in the area at those times.

This building is recorded but does not meet the criteria for listing.