Farmyard, Forkhill House, 22 Captains Road, Forkhill, Co Armagh, BT35 9RS

Farmyard at Forkhill House

A two-storey, C-shaped rubble-built farm building dating from around 1780, constructed to serve the adjoining Forkhill House. The farmyard sits immediately north of the remaining section of Forkhill House and is physically attached to it via screen walls.

The building's farmyard-facing front (referred to here as the south elevation) contains four ground-floor openings: two pedestrian doors with sheeted timber doors and two boarded windows. Above these, at first-floor level and aligned directly with the ground-floor openings, are four smaller window openings fitted with fixed timber ventilation louvers. A modern concrete external staircase, dating from around the 1960s, rises to the left of the east elevation.

The east (farmyard) face features a barred window opening to the left of the stair, followed by an elliptical-arched carriage doorway with sheeted timber double doors. To the right is a narrow window opening with a modern steel frame. A second elliptical-arched carriage door has been partially bricked up; within this opening sits a small pedestrian door, while the uppermost arched portion is timber sheeted with a small rectangular opening. Further right is a small timber-sheeted pedestrian door with a square vision panel. At first floor, adjacent to the head of the outside stair, is a small timber-sheeted hayloft door. Five window openings of varying sizes, each with fixed timber louvers, occupy the first floor: one to the left of the stair and four to the right. At the far right is a smaller window opening fitted with a 2-over-2 timber sash frame.

The south elevation's left side contains a pedestrian doorway with a latticed-paned window. To the right of centre is a large flat-arched carriage opening with a timber lintel but no door or frame. A small semicircular-arched pedestrian doorway with sheeted timber door sits to the right of this, followed by a taller pedestrian doorway fitted with a timber-sheeted door and a plain fanlight. Three evenly spaced window openings with 6-over-6 timber sash frames occupy the first floor. A smaller louvred window opening sits at the far right, where this section appears to be a later, flat-roofed addition. The far right of the south elevation also features a smaller window opening with a louvred frame.

The north (outer) face of the building contains two frameless window openings at first-floor level. Attached to this face is a large single-storey rubble-built gabled structure, now roofless and used as an open yard. To the southwest is a small two-storey offshoot with a ground-floor pedestrian doorway and window opening, both much overgrown. An additional doorway is situated on the west face. The remainder of the outer faces contain no openings.

The interior faces are whitewashed, whilst the exterior faces are bare rubble. The roof was originally hipped, though a portion of the southern range has been rebuilt and now incorporates a gable. The roof is covered with blue-black natural slate and includes a small rendered chimneystack on the south side. Rainwater goods comprise a mixture of uPVC and cast iron.

The southern range connects to the side of the main house via a tall screen wall incorporating a Tudor-arched opening formed in brick, now fitted with a modern wrought-iron domestic-scaled gate. The eastern side of the courtyard is largely enclosed by a tall stone wall, which features a now-blocked Gothic-arched opening. The remainder of this courtyard side is secured with modern farm gates. The yard surface is covered with cobblestones.