Tullyvallen Secession Meeting House, Newtownhamilton, Co.Armagh

Tullyvallen Secession Meeting House is a modest single-storey, four-bay rendered hall-type church built in 1851 by an unknown architect. Also known as the 'Bog Meeting House', it is located in a rural upland setting on the north-west side of Tullyneil Road near Newtownhamilton, County Armagh.

The building is planned as a T-shape with a rectangular main church block orientated south-west to north-east, flanked by smaller entrance blocks at the gables. A later single-storey rear return was added to the north-west. The roof has been replaced and uPVC windows installed circa 1986.

The main church block is covered with a pitched fibre cement tile roof with half-hipped gables and angled black clay ridge tiles. Flush eaves have painted timber fascia. Guttering is generally aluminium ogee, discharging to square-section uPVC downpipes; the rear return has square-section aluminium downpipes. The walling has a painted rough cast render finish with smooth render detailing to window and door surrounds, a rendered band to the plinth, and raised quoins.

The principal south-east elevation displays a datestone inscribed 'TULLYVALLEN SESSION MEETING HOUSE BUILT 1851' near the eaves. Four Gothic pointed-arch uPVC casement windows with Y-tracery and painted dressed stone cills occupy the main church block. The two lower entrance blocks flanking the main section each have two painted vertically-sheeted timber doors. The south-west entrance block is the primary porch; the north-east block is now disused. Walling to the facade has raised render quoins.

The south-west elevation shows the half-hipped gable of the main church block fronted by a lower gabled single-bay entrance porch with a square-headed six-pane uPVC window and painted stone cill. The south-east elevation of the porch provides an entrance. The rendered rear return, set significantly back from the church gable, has a glazed uPVC door and three uPVC windows.

The north-west elevation features a single Gothic pointed-arch uPVC window off-centre towards the south-west of the main church block. A trace of a second pointed-arch window is visible where the pitched roof of the rear return attaches, indicating the church originally had two windows to this elevation. The rear return has no openings to its north-west gable.

The north-east elevation comprises the hipped gable fronted by a lower gabled single-bay entrance porch with a square-headed six-pane uPVC window and painted stone cill. The north-east elevation of the rear return, set back from the church gable, has two three-part uPVC windows.

The building sits within an associated graveyard with mature trees to the north, accessed via modern galvanised metal gates hung on square-section pillars with pebbledash finish and reconstituted stone pyramidal caps. Concrete footpaths diverge from the main gate to the separate entrance blocks at the south-west and north-east gables. The graveyard is bounded on the south-east by dwarf modern blockwork with smooth render finish, topped by modern galvanised metal railings to the south-west of the main gate. Walling to the north-east has a pebbledash finish. Two additional gate sets punctuate the south-east boundary: one leading to graveyard, the other to a gravelled and concreted parking area serving a church hall built circa 2006. This five-bay hall, constructed in similar style with pitched natural slate roof, six-panel polished timber doors, and uPVC pointed-arch windows with Y-tracery, stands to the south-west.