17 Drumlough School Road, Rathfriland, Newry, Co Down, BT34 5EA

This is a small, vernacular farmhouse dating from the early 19th century, situated on the south side of Drumlough School Road in the townland of Drumlough, near Rathfriland. The house is two and a half storeys and three bays wide. It has a pitched roof covered in natural slate, with concrete skews. Four rendered and coped chimneys are present – one at each gable, and one on each side of the central bay, with the chimney between the centre and right bays being a dummy. A skylight is set into the front pitch (left bay) and the rear pitch (centre and right bays). The walls are random rubble construction, rendered and finished with an advanced rendered eaves course supporting half-round metal rainwater goods. The principal elevation faces east.

A single-storey, single-bay extension built of concrete blockwork with a monopitched corrugated metal roof adjoins the left bay. The front door, originally tongue and groove sheeted, has collapsed. A window is located to the right of the remaining section of this bay. A lean-to porch with a monopitched natural slate roof and concrete skews is positioned in the centre bay; it has a tongue and groove entrance door and a window on its front face, and a window in the main wall to its left. The right bay contains two windows. The left gable is blank. All windows are small 2/2 sliding sash windows with horns, without cills. The rear elevation has a 2/2 sash window to the left bay and a 6/1 sash window in the centre bay. The right gable is adjoined by a lower outbuilding with a pitched natural slate roof, rendered random rubble walls, and brick dressings to the openings. A lower outbuilding with a corrugated metal roof, of no particular interest, also abuts the right gable; the remainder of the gable is blank.

The house’s footprint is shown on the 1834 Ordnance Survey 6-inch map and was not valued, indicating an assessed value of under £5. There was no change in valuation between the 1860s and the 1920s, suggesting the existing building is likely from the period 1800-1819.