21a Castlewellan Road, Clough, Downpatrick, County Down, BT30 8RD

This is a substantially intact, two-storey gabled vernacular farmhouse likely dating from around 1800 to 1819. It stands at the head of a long lane, south of Castlewellan Road, less than a mile northwest of the village of Clough, in the townland of Drumcaw. The house has special architectural and historic interest, reflecting local vernacular building traditions.

The asymmetrical front elevation to the south features a modern flat-panel front door positioned to the left of centre. To its left are two small sash windows with horizontal astragals, and to the right, one similar window. A modern up-and-over garage door occupies the far right, potentially replacing an original doorway that may have once led into an integral shed or byre. Five similar, but shorter and unevenly spaced, windows are located on the first floor. The east gable, considerably shorter due to the rising ground, is blank. A retaining wall extends south from the southeast corner, upon which a large steel water tank is precariously situated, with a rainwater pipe running diagonally across the façade. The west gable is also blank. The rear north façade has a flat-panel door similar to the front, with two very small window openings to the right and one similar window to the left, all with modern frames. An outbuilding projects northward to the far left. The roof is covered in natural slate and features a pot chimney stack on the west gable and a similar stack along the east side of the ridge. Modern PVC rainwater goods are present. The exterior is finished with dry dash render, having a smooth rendered base.

A house of similar dimensions is recorded in a valuation from around 1836, suggesting it may have been over thirty years old at that time. The present owner’s family acquired the property around 1900. The building, along with its associated outbuildings, is included in the listing. The outbuildings, constructed of rubble, are grouped around the main house; one abuts the north side of the main façade.