house

Detached four-bay single-storey vernacular house, built c. 1840, with windbreak porch to front elevation (south), bed outshot to rear elevation (north), and with square-headed garage door to the west end of the front elevation (south) with timber sheeted double doors. Later in use as outbuilding, now out of use. Pitched corrugated-cement roof (formerly thatched) having two rendered chimneystacks. Smooth rendered finish over rubble stone construction; evidence of limewash remaining and traces of pegs at eaves formerly used for securing ropes over thatch. Square-headed window openings with two-over-two pane timber sliding sash windows and some remaining thin flagstone sills. Square-headed door opening to windbreak porch having replacement timber panelled door. Set slightly back from road to the south of Gleann Cholm Cille/Glencolumbkille.

Although now out of use, this vernacular house retains much of its early form and character, and is an appealing feature in the rural landscape to the south of Gleann Cholm Cille/Glencolumbkille. Modest in scale, it exhibits the simple and functional form of vernacular building in Ireland. Its visual expression and integrity is enhanced by the retention of timber sliding sash windows and by the interesting thin stone sills. The pegs at eaves level indicate that this building was originally or formerly thatched (these were used to tie ropes over to secure the thatch and add protection against the elements. The largely blank rear elevation is a typical feature of many small-scale vernacular dwellings in rural Ireland, while the bed outshot to the rear is a feature that is found on many vernacular buildings in Donegal and was used to house a bed adjacent to the hearth for warmth. The garage door to the west end may have been added during the mid-twentieth century. This house represents a decent surviving example of a once ubiquitous building type in the rural Irish countryside, and is a modest addition to the vernacular heritage of County Donegal. Sensitively restored with the thatch reinstated, this building would make a strongly positive contribution to its scenic locale.