St Joseph's RC Church, Downpatrick Street, Crossgar, Co Down BT30 9EA

St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Downpatrick Street, Crossgar

This Gothic Revival Roman Catholic church was built in 1870 to a design by architect Mortimer H. Thompson. It is set on the east side of Downpatrick Street at the centre of Crossgar. The building is constructed of random rubble grey wacke with pale sandstone dressings, and the roof is covered in blue slate.

The most prominent feature is a three-storey square tower surmounted by an octagonal spire with a metal cross at its apex. The spire is divided by three horizontal bands with geometric patterning. The octagonal section merges with the tower below through a broached transition, with small gables (each containing a small roundel) at the base of each octagonal face. These gables rest on a corbelled course with a machicolation-like appearance. Alternate faces of the octagonal section contain single pointed arched openings with drip moulding, framed by fine pilasters, with timber ventilation slats within.

The square tower section features double stepped buttresses at its corners, which are articulated with fine pilasters. The upper portion is contained between two string courses, the lower of which splays out slightly. To each face at this level is a centred decorative pointed arch feature: the northeast contains a stone inscribed with the date 1870, while the other three faces each display matching stylised Celtic crosses. Immediately below the stepped string course is a small pointed arched window on each face. At ground floor level are two matching double entrance doors, each with a leaded light fanlight, set within pointed arch openings with cusps and framed by fine pilasters and moulded archivolt. The southwest door (front) appears unused, while the southeast door serves as the main entrance.

The main southwest gable is framed by stepped buttresses. Its upper section contains a small cusped roundel set within a semicircular headed opening, framed by fine pilasters. The lower section has two equally spaced window openings, each with paired lancet windows and a roundel above, all with cusps, similarly framed with pilasters and moulded archivolt.

The northwest façade features reducing buttresses that divide the face into six equal bays. All but the second bay (counting from the right) has a tall lancet window with matching dressings. The second bay contains a gabled projection housing a small altar, with paired semicircular headed windows. Below the window cill of the fourth bay is a small lean-to projection infilling the space between buttresses. The sides of this façade are blank.

The rear northeast gable comprises the chancel area, which has a pitched roof set slightly lower than the main roof. It displays a triple lancet window arrangement set within dressings with pilasters, archivolt and cusps, all framed by buttresses. To the left, a two-storey flat-roofed section containing committee rooms merges with this gable, featuring three pointed arch windows to both ground and first floors. To the right of the gable is a single-storey gabled vestry. To the left of the vestry is a timber door with shouldered dressing, and to its immediate right is a paired window arrangement with matching shouldered opening. To the far right is a single-storey flat-roofed addition. The southwest and northwest faces of these rear extensions are blank, while the northeast face has plain window openings to the left and right of a centred door, all with plain cement dressings. The southeast face is blank.

The southeast façade is divided into six bays, the first of which is obscured by the projecting tower. The remaining bays all feature lancet windows as described above. The fourth bay has a small lean-to projection. To the far right is the flat-roofed projection with three pointed arch windows to the first floor and two pointed arch headed windows to the ground floor to the left, with a pointed arch headed door to the right.

The cast iron roof goods are supported on a projecting eaves course. The walls rest on a shallow projecting base course. The two flat-roofed extensions were added in recent times. The boundary is marked by a set of decorative wrought iron gates mounted within granite gate posts topped with a steeply pitched roof-like capstone.