Cairn Hill, 39 Rathfriland Road, Newry, Co Down, BT34 1JZ

Cairn Hill is a two-storey house with attic storey, comprising three bays, built in the Tudor-Revival style. It sits within mature gardens on Rathfriland Road near Newry, with a ruined gate lodge at the entrance.

The main house faces south-east. Its pitched natural slate roof features two large gables to either end of the façade and a smaller central gable. Two modern skylights have been added to the rear pitch. Three decorative rendered chimneys punctuate the roofline: one at each end and a third to the right of centre. Each end chimney breast projects from the end gables within a plain recessed panel, resting on a stepped cushion-moulded corbel at first floor and attic level (the corbel is partly missing on the left gable). The end chimneys, which break the ridge behind the decorative gable bargeboards, each comprise two square-section smooth-rendered stacks rising from a common base and finishing in conjoined corbelled caps with stop-end chamfered cames. The middle chimney is similar but comprises four stacks. Plastic ogee gutters with squared downpipes drain the roof. Large lead hopper heads occupy the left and right corners of the façade.

The façade gables are decorated with fretted ornamental bargeboards and decorated apexes. The large gables at left and right have an apex of punched quatrefoil detailing set within a stop-end chamfered frame. The left façade gable apex is inset with a 2/2 sliding sash window, and the bargeboard panelling here has been removed. The middle gable has a single apex trefoil. The walls are finished in painted wet dash render with a smooth chamfered base course and stepped vee-jointed render quoins throughout. The section of wall below each façade gable projects forward slightly.

A single-storey porch abuts the middle gable. It has a pitched natural slated roof with terracotta ridges and a ball finial. Its rainwater goods and bargeboard match the main building, with two quatrefoils to the apex. The porch walls are rendered as the main façade except the front wall, which is painted smooth line render with vee-jointed stepped quoins. Two granite steps rise to the main entrance within the porch gable. The door consists of two tongue-and-groove sheeted painted modern leaves with modern metal decorative strap-hinges and matching modern furniture, set within a chamfered opening with lined voussoirs to a Gothic head. To the right of the door are a doorbell and modern light. Each cheek of the porch has a single 1/1 sliding sash window (top sash smaller) with smooth stop-end chamfered reveal, smooth render architrave and painted granite cill. Above the porch at first floor is a similar casement window (but without architrave or cill), its head set within the decorative gable above.

At ground floor immediately to left and right of the porch are single narrow 2/2 sliding sashes (top sash smaller, without horns), each with smooth stop-end chamfered reveal and architrave, painted granite cill and squared drip mould over. Above each of these windows is an identical window, diminished in height and without drip moulds, their heads at eaves level.

The two end bays have almost identical fenestration. Granite steps rise to a full-height tripartite window set within a projecting painted and smooth rendered rectangular bay. The bay contains a 1/1 sliding sash window (with horns) to the centre and a similar but narrower window to either side. The bay has a rendered, stepped, sloping roof and smooth render walls with roll-mould chamfers to each corner and window reveal. At first floor on each end bay is a pair of 2/2 sliding sash windows (top sash smaller), each with smooth render stop-end chamfered reveal and painted granite cill; both share a linked, paired drip-mould. The apex of the left gable, as noted above, contains a 2/2 sliding sash window (with horns), apparently a later addition, with smooth render architrave and reveal and painted render cill.

The right elevation has two windows on each floor within the gable wall, either side of the chimney breast. The ground-floor windows are 2/2 sliding sashes (top sash smaller) without horns, each with smooth render stop-end chamfered reveal and architrave. The cill to the left window is concrete and slopes steeply away; the wall render below is uneven, suggesting it may once have been a door. The cill to the right window is moulded decorative render with a cavetto mould below. The wet dash above ground-floor window head level is patchy, indicating that a lean-to roof once abutted here. At first floor are two 2/2 casement windows in line with those below, both with smooth render reveals and granite cills.

The left elevation, forming part of the gable wall, has no openings and is abutted by a single-storey building which links to a large modern extension. This link block is set back from the façade line of the main block. It has a pitched artificial slate roof with overhanging eaves, rainwater goods and walls matching the façade. Its façade elevation has three modern top-hung 2/2 windows, each with smooth render architraves and reveals and modern concrete cill; all have squared drip moulds over, those above the two right windows being connected. The rear elevation of the link block has three modern plastic windows facing an enclosed courtyard.

The rear elevation of the main block is abutted at its centre by a flat-roofed return rising to eaves level. To the right, the front gable continues back and ties into a modern return running at right angles. The remaining wall is wet dashed with stepped quoins at the left and a single 1/1 sliding sash with horns at first floor of the left end bay.

A large modern two-storey extension runs across the rear of the building, with a pitched artificial slate roof. Its walls are painted render matching the house, and all windows are plastic with painted render architraves. The extension is generally well concealed behind the house, except where it wraps around the left gable of the main block. The size of this left extension detracts from the appearance of the main block.

The gate lodge fronting the main road has been partially demolished. It is constructed of random granite rubble and was apparently wet dashed. Historic photographs show it to have been one-and-a-half storeys high, arranged in an L-plan with a gable to the road and another to the driveway leading to the main house. The façade gable contains a pair of 2/2 horizontally-divided sliding sashes. The other gable has a tongue-and-groove sheeted door in the cheek facing the main road and two windows to the gable. The left elevation appears to have been blank, and the rear elevation is entirely gone. No trace remains of former wrought-iron gates, posts and railings.