4 Glendesha Road, Mullaghbawn, Newry, Co. Armagh, BT359XN

4 Glendesha Road, Mullaghbawn

A semi-detached two-storey building of three bays, originally constructed around 1795 by the Commissioners of the Barracks. The building was converted into a dwelling house around 1820 to provide accommodation for a curate, with a dispensary offering free medical treatment operated from an outbuilding. In 1891 the building was sold to the Catholic Church and became the parochial house for St Mary's, Mullaghbawn.

The building has a rectangular plan form. A single-storey single-bay entrance porch with hipped roof extends to the north-west, with a single-storey single-bay extension to the north-east extending to the rear. A single-storey cantilevered flat-roof extension to the south-east leads to a two-storey split-level extension also to the south-east with hipped roof. The building is attached on the south-west side to the adjacent building at 6 Glendesha Road.

The roof is constructed with pitched fibre cement and ridge tiles. Two red brick chimneystacks have profiled brick cornices, lead flashing and terracotta chimney pots. The rainwater goods are uPVC and aluminium. The walling is painted roughcast render with a smooth rendered eaves course, plinth and narrow margin corners.

The principal north-west elevation is asymmetrical, featuring square-headed openings with granite cills and smooth raised margins. Two over two single-glazed timber sliding sash windows are present. A multi-paned stained-glass timber sliding sash window lights the porch. A leaded stained-glass fixed-pane window is set into the north-east corner of the principal elevation. A timber panelled door stands to the north-east of the entrance porch, with a bootscraper adjacent. A date stone inscribed '1795' appears on the gabled north-east elevation, added after 1989 by the current owner. A timber casement window is also present on this elevation.

The rear elevation to the south-west features two half-dormers with leaded flat roofs, dormer cheeks and timber casement windows. A three-over-six timber sliding sash window lights the first floor on the south-west side of the rear elevation. A single-storey three-bay lean-to extends to the south-east.

The flat roof extension displays a decorative metal crest to the flat roof, supported on bracketed eaves board. The south-east elevation of the extension has rendered piers with infill square-headed window openings and concrete sills. The south-west elevation is of four bays with square-headed openings, timber casement windows and a timber-framed glazed door opening onto a raised external courtyard area.

The two-storey split-level extension has an asbestos-tiled roof and replacement metal rainwater goods. Roughcast rendered walling features a raised smooth rendered eaves course and smooth narrow margins. Square-headed openings have smooth rendered margins. A polycarbonate lean-to extends to the south-east elevation.

A rendered boundary party wall with the adjacent building extends from the south-east rear elevation into the gardens.

A free-standing garage stands to the east, built around 1940. It has a pitched asbestos-tiled roof, replacement metal rainwater goods, and lined and ruled rendered walling. Square-headed openings are fitted with fixed timber-pane windows and timber sheeted doors.

The principal north-west elevation has a raised area paved with concrete flags extending the length of the front elevation. Modern replacement fencing and a wrought iron entrance gate front the property. The rear south-east elevation has a concrete path and rendered retaining wall with concrete coping, beyond which extend mature gardens containing historic structures forming part of the original barracks complex.

The building is set back from and runs parallel with the road, accessed via a gravel driveway from the east. It is adjacent to the building at 6 Glendesha Road to the south-west. A mature hedgerow borders the north-west and mature gardens lie to the south-east with boundary walls and a tower structure associated with the former barracks forming the immediate setting.

The original barracks accommodation building was formerly surrounded by an inner boundary wall with four two-storey corner towers. Adjacent to the roadside, the uncoursed rubblestone boundary survives as a retaining wall, extending from the north-eastern elevation of the surviving tower. One corner tower to the north-west survives in complete condition, while extant remains of the north-east and south-east towers survive. Several further sections of the inner uncoursed rubblestone barrack wall survive as boundary walls to the gardens of the adjacent properties. The former barracks complex is located at the foot of Slievebrack and Croslieve mountains with extensive views northward over surrounding countryside within the ring of Gullion.