Entrance facade of former bath house, Central Promenade, Newcastle, Ballaghbeg, Co Down

Rebuilt and relocated front façade of a former bath house, which now acts as the gate screen to an outdoor swimming complex. The former bath house itself was built in c.1834, probably to designs by Thomas Duff, but was demolished in c.1985 (following bomb damage). The swimming complex itself is located on the E side of Central Promenade, overlooking the shore. The gate screen itself consists of two small single storey rectangular end ‘blocks’ (or wings) with a colonnade between. The front (W) façade of the blocks is in granite ashlar and appears to have be a faithful rebuilding of the former bath house façade, each block having a single centrally located window with panel beneath. The colonnade (which originally fronted a portico) also appears to be a faithful rebuild, having six Doric columns supporting a parapet, however, the parapet has PVC lettering attached and modern railings and gates span between the columns. Large portions of the N and S facades of both end blocks are also in granite ashlar with a single window (as before) to the S façade of the S block and the N façade of the N block. These facades also appear to be faithful rebuilds, but beyond this (to the E, where the blocks link to what appear to be changing room facilities) is modern build. The sheeted hipped roofs which cap the blocks are also modern (the original roofs were slated). The original bath house was described in the first survey of February 1971 as a ‘single storey building with basement storey exposed to the sea. The façade is constructed in ashlar granite rising to a square cornice and small parapet. Entrances surmounted by six pane fanlights are contained with a Doric hexastyle in antis portico [the colonnade-see above] flanked either side by square projections [the present end ‘blocks’-see above], one window in front. The main face of the building then continues for a further long bay each side. Plain trabeated window dressings are of granite. Windows have full glazing, some margined and sashed, some casement. Rear and sides are rendered with granite dressings, two shallow projections at rear correspond to longer projections on façade’.