House near No 156 Ballymena Road, Carnlough, Co Antrim, BT44 0LB

House near No 156 Ballymena Road

A two-storey vernacular farmhouse with integral byre and hay loft/store, of probable pre-1832 construction but likely enlarged to its present two-storey form in the early 1900s. This is a largely original example of developed vernacular architecture that retains considerable character through its integral byre and loft, sturdy external stone stair, and unusually positioned porch. The interior layout remains largely intact with most original detailing surviving, and the setting has not been compromised. Such larger vernacular dwellings, once common, are now increasingly scarce.

The house sits approximately 300 metres east of Ballymena Road in farmland sloping eastward towards the Irish Sea, around 3 kilometres south-west of Carnlough. Access is via a shared lane serving several other properties, and the house is not visible from the main road.

The structure is built of whitewashed random rubble with a pitched slate roof and two centrally positioned brick chimneystacks. The front elevation faces roughly east and is asymmetrical, with the dwelling section to the right (north) and a large single-storey gabled porch to the far right. The porch has two entrance doorways, one on the south face and one on the north, both with replacement timber-sheeted doors, and contains a small 4-light fixed timber window in its east gabled face.

The front façade of the main house section displays an informal vernacular arrangement of window openings, with first-floor windows considerably larger than those on the ground floor. Windows have cut stone sills and mainly timber lintels with sash frames in various glazing patterns: 2/2, 6/1 and 3/6. The byre and loft section features a flight of stone steps at the far left providing access to the loft doorway, with two ground-floor doorways to its right, all with timber-sheeted doors. A small high-level 8-light fixed timber window illuminates the loft from within the east gabled face. The south gable is largely blank with only remnants of render flashing indicating a single-storey structure was once attached. The west façade has an informal arrangement of window openings with similar frame types to the front, though some timber lintels have been replaced in concrete and two openings have brick dressings. The north gable is completely concealed by ivy growth.

The documentary record indicates a building of matching size and orientation appears on the 1832 Ordnance Survey map but was not recorded in the 1833 valuation, suggesting it was then modest in size, probably single-storey and likely thatched. By the 1859 valuation the property contained two separate units: a caretaker's house occupied by John Kilbraith and rated at 5 shillings, and a house with office occupied by Mary Kilbraith and rated at 10 shillings. These low rateable values indicate the structure remained unchanged from 1832. Tenancy records show the caretaker's house (located at the north end) was occupied by Bernard Kelly from 1864, Jane Crabbe from 1903, Robert Crabbe from circa 1933, and John Crabbe from 1968. The other property was occupied by William Campbell in 1868, Alexander Galbraith in 1878, Kate Galbraith in 1937, and Alex O'Kane in 1966. Both freeholds were acquired by their occupants in 1916 from the estate of the Marchioness of Londonderry, and by 1969 John Crabbe held the entire building. The house's raising in height appears to have occurred in the early 1900s, possibly around 1916 when the freeholds were acquired, as suggested by internal detailing including the staircase and an upper-level fireplace. The porch may also have been added at this time.

The building is currently in use as a farm outbuilding. Originally various outbuildings attached to the house enclosed a small farmyard; some have since collapsed whilst others remain in advanced decay. To the immediate north stands a much later dwelling, now abandoned and entirely overgrown. The laneway provides access to two or three other houses and various fields.