market house, DUNFANAGHY · NIAH 40807006

Although now altered and out of use, this mid-nineteenth century former market house occupies a pivotal location to the centre of Dunfanaghy that befits an originally important civic building. Alterations over the years have diminished its integrity although its original form and character are still readily discernible. Its visual appeal is enhanced by the retention of the natural slate roof although the replacement of the fittings to the openings detracts from its visual amenity. It originally had an arcade of carriage-arches to the front elevation, a feature of many Irish market houses. The ashlar block-and-start quoins to them corners, the ashlar lintels to the upper floor windows to the main block, and the ashlar block-and-start quoins to the heads of the carriage-arches, lend this building a subdued grandeur. The cut stone plaque to the front elevation records that this structure was originally built by Alexander Robert Stewart of nearby Ards House (now demolished). The Stewart family were the landlords of the area from the start of the eighteenth century and had a seat at nearby Horn Head House (see 40807001) to the north-west. The market house was built on land reclaimed from Sheephaven Bay by the Stewart family and indicates a substantial financial investment by the Stewart family, and a degree of commercial confidence in the area at the time of erection (the eve of the Great Famine). This building was the centrepiece of local commerce for many decades, and was extend by a bay to the east at some stage shortly after c. 1903 (not on Ordnance Survey twenty-five map of town). This building forms the centrepiece of the town of Dunfanaghy, and is integral element of the social history of the town as a former market house. The building occupies a prominent position in a square in the centre of town and contributes to the streetscape along Main Street. Sensitively restored, this building would create an important focal point in the streetscape, and would represent an important element of the built heritage of the local area.