Grove Hill, 7 Mill Road, Annacloy, Downpatrick, Co Down, BT30 9AS

Grove Hill

This unusual and mildly picturesque house, located west of Mill Road approximately two miles northwest of Downpatrick, is a one and a half storey structure with single storey wings that assumed its current form in the later 19th century. The building sits on a slight slope descending from east to west.

The front elevation faces north and is asymmetrical in composition. The large central portion rises to one and a half storeys with single storey wings extending to either side. The front façade of the central section features two odd, square, single storey bays at the first floor level, glazed on all sides with shallow, lead-covered, hipped roofs. A glazed door is set into the east face of the left bay, and a small window with PVC frame sits immediately to the left on the main façade. Above, two similar windows are set within small half-dormers. The east wing has a single comparable window, while the west wing displays a large tripartite window to its front. A large single storey flat-roofed garage with garage door, pedestrian door, and window is positioned at the gable of the east wing, facing south. All window frames throughout are PVC.

The west elevation presents a complex appearance. The west wing gable rises to the left with a window matching the front treatment. To its right stands the west face of a large two storey rear return. At ground floor level of this return sits a small lean-to, which connects to a single storey flat-roofed extension; the lean-to has a PVC door and window, while the extension has a large picture window. The upper floor of the return's west face contains a small window similar to those on the front.

The rear elevation consists of the return gable to the left and the rear of the main house to the right. The return gable features two windows per floor, those at ground level grouped closely together, with those above widely spaced. The east face of the return displays two similar windows at first floor level and a large window at ground floor level to the left. At the intersection of return and main rear façade sits a flat-roofed porch extension with a PVC door facing south and large glazed areas to south and east. Above this porch are two windows in the façade of the main house, the right one set within a small gabled half-dormer. The rear façade of the east single storey wing has a glazed door.

Throughout, the façades are finished in roughcast and painted. The roof features a slight overhang to all parts except the return and is covered in natural slate. A cast iron skylight is positioned on the west side of the return roof. Four rendered chimney stacks, symmetrically arranged, serve the main house, with one additional stack serving the return gable. Metal rainwater goods are installed throughout.

To the south of the house stands an L-shaped two storey outbuilding with a part hipped, part gabled slated roof. The east façade features a series of large brick-headed elliptical archways, two of which have been filled with modern garage doors, another largely blocked up, leaving only two open.