73 Straid Road, Ahoghill, Ballymena, Co Antrim, BT2 2NT

73 Straid Road is a single-storey vernacular dwelling of pre-1832 construction, situated in the townland of Gloonan near Ahoghill. It represents a rare surviving example of a house type that was once common throughout the region but is now fast disappearing, with only a few hundred remaining where thousands once stood.

The building retains its original roof timbers and some thatch beneath the present corrugated metal covering, a feature of particular note that adds significantly to its special interest. Despite various alterations over time, the house retains much of its original appearance and setting.

The front façade faces roughly east and is asymmetrical in composition. A shallow open porch of relatively recent construction, built in brick or block with a lean-to metal roof, projects to the right of centre. The doorway within has a flat head and modern flat-panelled door. To the right of the porch is a single window opening, while to the left are two further openings set at a slightly lower level. All are flat-headed with replacement timber window frames, varnished and fitted with top-opening lights.

The upper level of the south gable contains a flat-headed window opening with a 1/1 timber sash frame, suggesting the former presence of a loft level. Attached to the south gable is a mid to later 20th century lean-to structure of concrete block and brick with a corrugated-iron roof, which retains a small section of rubble walling from an earlier building on the site.

The rear (west) façade has four flat-headed window openings of similar style to the front, though the second from the left is slightly smaller. All retain replacement timber frames with top openers. The north gable also has a flat-headed window opening to its upper level, fitted with a two-light timber frame. A lean-to shed of possible early 1900s construction, with corrugated-iron roof, adjoins this gable.

The main roof is pitched and covered with corrugated iron. Two replacement chimneystack protrusions rise from it—one roughly at centre in brick, the other to the north gable and rendered. The walls are finished with whitewashed roughcast render (now painted) with smooth vertical bands to each edge.

The house stands in a well-tended garden on the south side of Straid Road, approximately 1.7 kilometres south-east of Ahoghill, between the roadside and a small stream. A modern prefabricated flat-roofed dwelling stands behind it and appears to be the main residence currently. The surrounding countryside comprises fields in pasture with some scattered houses of varying ages.

Historical records show that in 1832 a building of similar size and orientation stood on the site, with another structure of similar length adjoining it at right angles to the north-east. By the 1857 Ordnance Survey map and c.1860 valuation, the main dwelling was occupied by William J. Nicol, with Reverend R.W. Rowan as immediate lessor and a rateable value of 15 shillings. The long range attached to the north-west was recorded as containing three dwellings, occupied by Ester Boyd, Samuel Hood, and John Duohy respectively, each rated at 15 shillings. By 1884, two of the three dwellings in the northern section were recorded as "down" and the third soon fell out of the valuation, suggesting demolition or dereliction. In 1886, Henry James Clarke occupied the present dwelling as tenant of J.J. Rowan, acquiring the freehold in 1906 and remaining in residence until around 1930. Samuel Robinson then leased the property from David Cameron from 1935, followed by Eliza A. Robinson in 1938, though the house stood vacant by 1941. James Connor acquired or inherited the property in 1943 and remained in occupation until at least 1972.