Old Masonic Hall, Maytown Road, Bessbrook, Co.Armagh

Old Masonic Hall, Maytown Road, Bessbrook, County Armagh

This is a two-storey, five-bay former Masonic hall built in 1872, now converted into two self-contained dwellings. It was constructed for Mullaghglass Masonic Lodge (Lodge No. 696) on a plot of land granted by Major M. J. Hall, a prominent local landlord who owned most of the surrounding townland. The architect is unknown. The building stands on a prominent site at the crossroads where Maytown Road, Millvale Road, Main Street Bessbrook, and a local access road meet — one of the main approaches to Bessbrook village.

Architecture and Materials

The building has a rectangular plan form and faces southwest onto the Maytown Road crossroads. The walls are built in random-coursed, rock-faced local Newry Granodiorite stone with red brick dressings. Windows and door openings are square-headed with gauged brick surrounds, stepped red brick surrounds, and stone cills. The pitched roof is covered in natural slate with angled black clay ridge tiles. There are rectangular-section red brick chimneys to both the northwest and southeast gables. The eaves are flush with a single red brick corbel course. Rainwater goods consist of cast iron half-round guttering discharging to circular-section downpipes.

Windows are generally six-over-six double-hung sliding timber sash windows with window horns. The rear elevation has top-opening timber casement windows.

Principal (Southwest) Elevation

The front elevation is symmetrical and faces the crossroads. A modest front garden is internally divided by hooped painted metal railings, with random-coursed rock-faced dwarf stone walling and stone coping forming the external yard boundaries. Two-part painted metal vehicular gates are positioned at the northwest end, and a similar foot gate hung on slim posts is aligned to the centre of the elevation. A concrete path from the foot gate leads to a four-panelled painted timber door at the centre of the facade, fitted with black iron furniture and a square-headed fanlight above (this door serves No. 3). There are four windows at first-floor level aligned with those at ground floor. The central bay contains the main entrance door at ground floor and, above it at first-floor level, a moulded rectangular granite datestone inscribed: "Mullaglass Masonic Hall, 1872", with the date enclosed within a Masonic set square and compass symbol.

Northwest Elevation

The northwest-facing gable has a red brick chimney at its apex and is finished throughout in smooth cement render. A painted timber four-panel door at ground-floor level towards the northeast end of this elevation has a two-part window to its left-hand (northeast) side.

Northeast (Rear) Elevation

The rear elevation faces northeast and is enclosed by a rock-faced, random-coursed stone retaining wall forming the northeast boundary of a narrow, raised, and paved yard. The ground floor of the rear elevation has a smooth rendered finish; the first floor retains the original stone walling and has three timber casement windows with concrete heads and slim concrete cills.

Southeast Elevation

The southeast elevation faces a local access road. It has a red brick chimney at its gable apex and a projecting single-storey monopitch-roofed porch attached to its southwest end, added in approximately 1985–86. A painted metal scrollwork foot gate leads from the access road to the front garden at the southwest, where the porch has a six-panelled painted timber door (serving No. 1) facing southwest, with painted metal furniture and a single casement window to the southeast side of the porch. Smooth rendered dwarf walling extends northeast from the porch along the side of the access road, enclosing a modest yard accessed through a painted timber foot gate. This yard leads to a panelled painted timber entrance door with a single window adjoined to its northeast side, fitted with black iron furniture; a monopitched canopy above the door and adjoining window is supported on plain painted timber brackets. Two equally spaced six-over-six double-hung sash windows sit at first-floor level. The elevation is generally finished in smooth cement render.

History

Mullaghglass Masonic Lodge No. 696 was originally granted its warrant on 4 January 1789, as recorded by Francis Crossle in The History of Nelson Masonic Lodge, No. XVIII Newry (1809–1909). The warrant was renewed in 1867, ahead of the construction of this purpose-built hall. Following its completion, the Annual Revisions set the total rateable value of the hall at £8, noting that the Master of the local lodge was Doctor Joseph Lightburne, a local medical doctor residing at Rosemount, Newry. At its height, Mullaghglass Lodge had 189 registered members. The building was recorded on the third edition Ordnance Survey map of 1906, showing its current rectangular layout. By around 1890, ownership of the site had passed to John Harland, a local farmer and merchant. The lodge continued to meet here until 1898, when it was dissolved. The designation Lodge No. 696 was not revived until 1945, when it was granted to Mourne Masonic Lodge in Annalong.

Following the lodge's dissolution, the hall was converted into three self-contained dwellings leased to private tenants by John Harland. The 1901 Census of Ireland described the building as a first-class structure containing three dwellings, each of three rooms. The First General Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1936–57) recorded the building as subdivided into two ground-floor dwellings and one larger upper-floor dwelling, all leased by the Trustees of Mullaghglass Orange Hall, with a total rateable value of £11 15s. By the end of the Second General Revaluation (1956–72) the layout was unchanged and the total rateable value stood at £16 15s.

The building was listed in 1985 and underwent extensive renovation in 1985–86, converting it to its current arrangement as two self-contained dwellings. This work included the addition of the single-storey entrance porch to the southeast gable, re-slating of the roof, installation of new floors throughout, and construction of modern kitchen and bathroom facilities. The internal plan and finishes have therefore been altered, though the building retains its external character.

Setting and Significance

The former hall sits just north of the crossroads at the junction of Maytown Road, Millvale Road, Main Street Bessbrook, and a local access road, outside the Bessbrook Conservation Area. It forms part of a cluster of historic buildings at the crossroads, including Mullaghglass Orange Hall to the east (built c.1897) and a former rectory to the west. The Orange Hall was not constructed until 25 years after the Masonic hall. Bessbrook itself is an important model mill village founded on Quaker ideological principles, containing numerous historic buildings including a former linen mill, the formally designed Charlemont Square (built c.1862–66) and the later College Square (built c.1883), as well as various secular and ecclesiastical buildings of note. The former Masonic hall is of local historical and social importance as a surviving purpose-built lodge building associated with a long-established Masonic lodge and with the wider social and institutional life of the area. The extent of the listing covers the hall, walling, gate, and railings.