Tag Archives: Dereliction

Co. Down, Documentary, Photo-Essay

The Hanging Fireplace!

The Hanging Fireplace of Moneyreagh!

 

Dringing home along the Moneyreagh Road towards Ballygowan I’ve been fascinated by an old derelict dwelling near the village of Moneyreagh, at what used to be known as ‘Milligan’s Cross.’  There’s nothing special about the building, except that there’s an old second floor fireplace exposed at the side of the building.  Tonight I asked Janette to leave me off outside the old building, so that I could make some photographs of the fireplace, and its surrounds, – and then to walk the two mile journey home.  Here’s my favourite image:

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Fujifilm X-T30. F=21mm f/8 @ 1/125th sec on ISO100

I love the textures and colours in the walls and brick, and the contrast between the bright blue tiles and the crumbling plaster in the walls.

Continue reading The Hanging Fireplace! →

Co. Down, Photo-Essay, Streetscapes

Moneyreagh Gospel Hall – Update

In June 2018 I made some photographs of the derelict exterior of the old Moneyreagh Gospel Hall.  The building had been unused for some years and was up for sale.  Here’s one of the images from that day…

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The hall has, presumably, been sold, and the roof has been removed, and the walls stripped back to the brick, – so it’s probably going to be converted to a dwelling.  I stopped at the site a few days ago to make some more photographs, and to see what the inside of the building is like now. Continue reading Moneyreagh Gospel Hall – Update →

Co. Antrim, Landscapes, Streetscapes

Ballymartin, Co.Antrim

Ballymartin Road runs from the A57 Templepatrick Road to the Ballypalady Road, in Newtownabbey, and crosses the NIR trainline from Belfast to Antrim by way of a remote controlled level crossing.  It’s a single track line and trains cross the road every 30 minutes or so.  I first crossed it around 10 years ago, when I visited a bride’s home for photographs on her wedding day, but more recently a road closure forced me to travel along this minor road again.  I was reminded about the derelict building that sits at the side of the tracks, now covered in very professional looking graffitti.

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It has chimneys and looks like it may once have been someone’s home – perhaps that of a railway worker?  At the time I made a mental note to pay it a visit again when next in the area.

UPDATE: A comment on a Facebook post in the Northern Ireland Railways Past and Present group has helped me shed some light on this.  The cottage was the home of the gatekeeper, who opened and closed the level crossing goes, before automation.  For a time this section of track was mothballed, and only maintenance vehicles travelled along it.  The woman who lived sin the cottage was called Maggie McFarland, and when a driver was going along the line the trains would stop to have a chat with her!

Sadly, the house has now been demolished.

I took the Fujifilm X-T2.  It was a cloudy enough October day and the light required an ISO around 800.  Here’s some of the images.

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F/16 @ 1/60th Sec on ISO800, focal length 16mm.

Continue reading Ballymartin, Co.Antrim →

Beautiful Ulster, Co. Antrim, News and Commentary, Reportage

A Much Loved Dereliction?

There’s a derelict house on Sourhill Road, Ballymena, which presents the passer-by with some interesting contradictions.  The house is or rather was, a beautiful building, – almost an enigma, in its construction and decor, with beautiful colours, and fascinating roof patterns, and yet on even a casual inspection it is crumbling and decaying with broken slates and rotten timber.  It is unoccupied and abandoned, but sits in well kept extensive grounds, with mown grass and a well kept gravel path.  Its windows and doors have been removed and replaced with boards, but the boards have been painted to look like… windows and doors!

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This place is derelict, but someone still cares for it! Continue reading A Much Loved Dereliction? →