House — 17th century in Farranrory Lower

On low rise of grassland in wet poorly drained land in upland region with good views in all directions. Nearby stream 60m to N. In the Civil Suvey (1654-6) William Faninge is listed as proprietor of the castle in 1640 and its is described as good little castle with a good thatcht house & some cabbins' (Simington 1931, vol. 1, 115). This house may be the thatched house described in the Civil Survey. Attached to the W face of the tower house (TS049-051001-) are the remains of a ruinous two storey single pile farmhouse (int. dims. 5.5m N-S; 12.3m E-W; wall T 0.7m; ext. dims. 7m N-S; 13.75m E-W) of possible 17th-century date. The doorway of the tower house has been blocked up with a slit ope inserted into the blocking, immediately W of the doorway is the N wall return of the added 17th-century farmhouse. Possibly the door of the tower house was blocked up when the 17th-century house was added with access to the tower house from the ground floor of the new house, incorporating the guardroom as the access passage into the tower house. Evidence for an inserted doorway into the W face of the tower house from the 17th-century house and fireplace inserted into external W face of castle for the ground-floor chamber of the 17th-century house. This house had single room extension (ext. dims. 7m N-S; 6.5m E-W added onto the W gable in the 19th century, evidence for reuse or architectural fragments possibly from the tower house off centre to W in the S wall of the house. The dwelling was aligned E-W with its front facing S with doorway off centre to E on S wall. Two-storey house consisting of four bays lighting three rooms. N wall only survives as low wall footings (H 0.6m) while the S wall survives in places to roof line as does the W gable, all windows are destroyed and doorway is partially destroyed. Fireplaces at either end of house, in the W gable and at ground-floor level in the external face of the W wall of the tower house. Wrapped silage bales up against external face of S wall making detailed examination of house impossible. There is no evidence of the cabbins mentioned in the Civil Survey description. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 26 August 2011