Lurgana House, 4 Lurgana Road, Lurgan, Co.Armagh, BT60 2JW

Lurgana House is a substantial two-storey Italianate-style villa on an asymmetrical plan, built circa 1857, that was constructed onto a two-storey Georgian mill house, which itself was built onto a single-storey original house of the mid to late 18th century. The house is located at the northern end of Lurgana Road near its junction with Ballymoyer Road, approximately 1 mile south-west of Whitecross, which is in turn approximately 8 miles north-west of Newry. It sits within its own extensive grounds surrounded by mature trees and gardens, with a large enclosed farmyard on the south side containing extensive rubblestone outbuildings that largely predate 1834-5.

The substantial two-storey mid-19th century block, built onto the north side of the Georgian mill house, is faced in stucco and presents three formal facades, all with wide eaves on large block modillions. Each facade is elaborately stuccoed with channelled rustication and vermiculated quoins on the ground floor and plain quoins to the upper floor. The roof is covered in natural slate with stuccoed chimney stacks.

The front elevation on the north side is the entrance elevation with three bays. The advanced section on the right side has a large tripartite window on the ground floor level and paired sliding sash windows in elaborate lugged surrounds with segmental arched heads on the first floor. A tall flat-roofed porch projects from the re-entrant angle, featuring a recessed doorcase with brackets beneath a squat segmental fanlight and a tall arched window opening in its east side. The left side has similar tripartite windows on the ground floor and paired sliding sash windows in elaborate lugged surrounds on the first floor level.

The east side elevation features the main two-storey block on the right side with four window openings aligned on both ground and first floor levels, all fitted with 4/4 timber sliding sash windows. Ground floor windows have moulded surrounds, while first floor windows have elaborate lugged surrounds with segmental arched heads. A stuccoed chimney sits at the centre of the ridge. A two-storey hipped roof block set back on the left side is ruled and lined rendered with plain eaves. This section includes a round arched window opening with a multipane window at quarter-landing level and a smaller window opening to the right at first floor level with a 3/3 sliding sash window. The rear face of this block has a window opening at half-landing level. A tall stuccoed chimney stands at the valley. The lower Georgian block on the left side has a single window opening with a multi-pane window at ground floor level with no window openings to the first floor level. Two chimneys sit on the ridge, one on the left side in brick and one on the right rendered. The single storey section of the original house is extant on the left side with a pitched roof and no apparent openings. A two-storey range of rendered outbuildings abuts the south side of the single-storey section.

The rear elevation on the south side shows the rear facade of the main two-storey block partially abutted by the lower Georgian wing on the left side. The right side is abutted by the stairwell return, which has one window opening at half landing level on its south side. The rear facade of the Georgian block is abutted by the single storey block, which in turn is abutted by the row of taller outbuildings.

The west side elevation features two window openings on the left side with long 4/4 timber sliding sash windows with moulded surrounds. Two shorter window openings aligned above have 4/4 timber sliding sash windows with segmental arched heads and elaborate lugged surrounds. An advanced section to the right side includes a single-storey flat-roofed bay window at ground floor level with a 6/6 timber sliding sash window to the centre and 2/2 timber sliding sash windows to the splays, with stepped cornicing to the bay. Paired narrow 4/4 timber sliding sash windows above the bay have segmental arched heads and elaborate lugged surrounds. A lower two-storey plain Georgian section to the right side has sliding sash windows on the ground floor level, aligned with the same above. Two chimneys sit on the ridge, one on the right side in brick and one on the left rendered. The single storey original section to the right side has a single window opening with a tripartite multi-pane window to the centre with a segmental arched head.

The entrance to the house is on the north-east side from Lurgana Road through a pair of modest square-plan stone gate posts with small pyramidal capping stones and wrought iron gates. Low stone walling runs along the boundary with Lurgana Road. A separate entrance to the east side of the house and the northern ranges of outbuildings leads from Lurgana Road through squared rubblestone piers. A further entrance, now disused, to the farmyard and southern ranges of outbuildings on Lurgana Road gives access through broken wrought iron gates.

The outbuildings are of various sizes and constructed mostly of rubblestone, some with rendered facades and infill brick. They are roofed with a mixture of natural slate and corrugated iron. The house walls are of stucco construction with a natural slate roof and timber sliding sash windows. Rainwater goods are unknown.