The Brewhouse and walling, Red Hall, Ballycarry, Larne, Co Antrim, BT38 9JL

The Brewhouse and Walling, Red Hall

The Brewhouse is a large two-storey servants' wing built in a classical style, dating from between 1820 and 1839 during the period of the Ker family — though whether it was a late commission for R. G. Ker or for his nephew David S. Kerr, who succeeded him in 1822, is not known. It is attached to the north-east corner of Red Hall House, a country house with origins dating back to at least the 17th century, and until recently was connected to it by a doorway at the south-west corner. The building is traditionally known as the Brewhouse among the family of the present and previous owners, though it is not identified as such in any surviving records or maps. It was converted for use as a house around 1970, and stands within the area of a scheduled monument (ANT 47:4).

The building is of rectangular plan with a hipped roof and presents its main entrance to the east. Its classical character comes from its distinctly proportioned overall form, the use of rusticated quoins, and controlled ornamentation rather than elaborate decoration. Some alterations to windows and doors detract from the appearance in detail. Its very fine setting at the centre of an unspoiled estate, together with the other estate buildings surrounding it, adds considerably to its significance as part of an important group.

East front

The east elevation is eight windows wide across two storeys, with a small single-storey porch set back at the left-hand end. The walls of the main block are finished in comparatively new smooth cement render, with rusticated quoins in older render at each corner. The hipped roof is covered in Bangor Blue slates laid in regular courses, with tiled ridges and a modern flush rooflight near the centre. Two symmetrically positioned chimneys are smooth rendered with swept caps on moulded cornices and brackets, offset at the base, each carrying four cream-coloured stoneware pots of square section. Rainwater drainage is handled by cast iron gutters and two full-height cast iron downpipes, with one PVC downpipe running to single-storey height at the centre and various small-bore PVC pipes connecting into the left-hand drainpipe.

Ground floor windows are rectangular timber sliding sash, vertically hung, mainly six over six lights, mainly without horns, set in plain unmoulded reveals with cills of sandstone. There are exceptions: the first window from the left has been shortened to three over three lights and fitted with horns, with a timber board at the top and smooth cement render at the bottom filling the rest of the opening; the fifth window from the left has also been shortened to two over two lights with horns, occupying only the top of the opening, with the space below blocked in smooth cement render; the sixth window has horns. First-floor windows are all rectangular timber sliding sash, vertically hung, six over three lights, with horns except on the first two from the left. At the fifth window from the left, the level of the windows steps down on both floors. At the right-hand end of the main block, a low boulder stone wall borders a sunken area leading down to a segmental brick-arched culvert, which is raised slightly above garden level and is overgrown.

The porch has channelled rustication to its walls, a hipped roof slated to match the main block with terracotta tiles to the ridge, and a cast iron gutter. Its entrance contains a rectangular timber door in varnished pine with a herringbone pattern, above a sandstone step.

South elevation

The south elevation presents the blank end wall of the main block, with the porch projecting forward to the left. The porch is rusticated to match the entrance front and contains one window — a rectangular timber sliding sash, vertically hung, six over three lights, with horns and a sandstone cill. A cast iron gutter and downpipe run to the left-hand corner in the angle with Red Hall House. The area across the front of the main block and porch is grassed, with small clumps of flowers.

West elevation

The west elevation is asymmetrical except in the positioning of its two chimneys. The walls are smooth cement rendered with a projecting rendered plinth and a platband at eaves level. Rusticated smooth rendered quoins mark the left-hand extremity, and a smooth rendered screen wall projects forward up to storey height to enclose the yard. Openings are irregularly spaced and at varying heights.

Six first-floor windows are all of similar size: rectangular timber sliding sash, vertically hung, twelve over twelve lights, with horns, and cills that appear to be stone. One dormer window contains a rectangular timber fixed light of six panes, with timber checks and a lead-covered roof. There were originally four doorways at ground floor level, two of which have been partly blocked up to form windows. The remaining door to the left is a rectangular ledged timber door set in a chamfered rendered surround incorporating a keystone in render. The doorway to its right contains a modern glazed flush wooden door set in a similar surround. Of the four ground-floor windows, two are set within the partly blocked-up doorways and retain their similar surrounds; the window between the two doors is a timber sliding sash, vertically hung, six over three lights with horns; the other blocked-up doorway contains a pair of timber side-hung casements of two lights each. The remaining two ground-floor windows are sashed, six over three lights, without horns, set in unmoulded recesses like those on the first floor.

North elevation

The north elevation is the blank end wall of the main block, rendered to match the rest of the building with quoins at the corners. Projecting forward on the right-hand side is a curved screen wall of single-storey height, smooth cement rendered on the outer face and bearing traces of red colouring, with a plain concrete coping. The screen wall terminates on the left with a large square pier of smooth cement render — damaged in places to reveal its original brickwork construction — carrying a moulded cap with a ball finial. An entrance archway returns from this pier back to the north wall of the main block. The archway is a segmental-arched opening with blackstone voussoirs bearing traces of red paint, surmounted by a swept-up parapet with a ball finial; the face of the archway and the screen walls to each side are rendered but in poor condition. Within the screened area, a cast iron gutter and downpipe run to the right-hand side of the north wall; the iron framework of a former porch projects forward, incorporating a circular cast iron pillar, though the opening is now closed up; stone steps in this area are overgrown. The inner face of the curved screen wall is roughly rendered rubble, and the inner surface of the archway screen is similar, with a brickwork arch and rendered reveals to the opening.

Yard screen and walling

The yard to the west is entered through a screen wall connecting with the building at the north-west corner. This consists of a pair of large rendered piers with moulded bases, moulded courses, and ball finials, which mark a vehicular entrance now lacking its gates. A pedestrian archway connects the gateway with the building, formed as a segmental arch with a plain moulded surround and projecting keystone, all in smooth render bearing traces of red paint. A short length of similar screen wall runs to the right of the gateway, terminating in a square pier with a damaged cap and a missing ball finial. The inner faces of the gate screen and walling are smooth rendered and also bear traces of red paint.

Historical note

The Brewhouse appears on the Ordnance Survey map of 1831, at which time it had a central return to the east. This central return is still present on the 1858 map but has disappeared thereafter. The Ordnance Survey Memoirs for the area note that "the offices are not extensive." Despite its physical attachment to one of Ireland's more historically significant country houses, the building receives virtually no specific mention in published sources on Red Hall, though it is referenced in the context of the wider estate in works including C. E. Brett's Buildings of County Antrim (1996) and M. Bence-Jones's Burke's Guide to Country Houses: Ireland (1978).