Is the story of the origin of the Old School roof merely a delightful piece of local folklore or is it true?  If the Priory roof was recycled how old is it? The answers to these questions may prove to be of more than academic interest. 

How old is the Old School?

The Old School is generally thought to have been built in 1845 and though this is not certain it seems likely to be correct.

The vestry minutes of 1842 record a meeting being called on 6^th April ‘for the purpose of considering building a new church for the said parish of Holywood on a new and more convenient site’. The new Church was consecrated in 1844 and the 1847 watercolour on the previous page shows the school sitting opposite the Church. 

Unfortunately the vestry minutes do not make any specific reference to the construction or maintenance of the building; however they do mention it as a venue for vestry meetings.  

Only one vestry meeting is recorded in the minutes as having taken place in the ‘old’ parish church and that was in 1845.  The 1847 minutes show that on Monday 26^th April an adjourned meeting was held in the ‘school room near to the Church’. From that date until 1852 vestry meetings were usually held in what was referred to as either the school room or the Parochial Schoolhouse. In 1858 the vestry minutes refer to the building as the Parochial /National School.

Was the Priory roof used for the Old School?

Local history relates that the timbers and other components of the roof from the Old Priory, which had been abandoned following the consecration of the new church in 1844, were used for the school. Certainly the trusses are unusual and show signs of having been made to fit. There are slots cut in some of the beams that bear no relation to the current structure and the pitch of the trusses does not exactly match the pitch of the roof. At each gable of the hall the trusses are built into the wall as a dummy truss. This is consistent with the fact that the Priory is slightly longer than the school building. It is also interesting to note that the width of the two buildings match to within 50mm.

 

There is a painting in the library by H Frazer and dated 1855 that shows the Old Priory without a roof and already in a ruined state. We have not found definite proof that the story is true but the facts are consistent with it.

When did the Priory roof date from?

It is uncertain what age the roof of the Priory would have been at the time when it was abandoned in 1845. In1572 Sir Brian MacPhelim O’Neill burnt the Priory roof to prevent it from being used as a barrack by the English Army. The Priory was subsequently refurbished as a Parish Church by Sir James Hamilton sometime around 1615. The vestry minutes make little reference to the building save for the cost of whitewash and repairs to the roof and clock. The bell tower was added circa 1800 and a gallery was also added at some point but again no mention of these major works is to be found in the vestry minutes. It is possible that the roof of the Priory was replaced during these refurbishments. 

The school roof is of pitched pine, this means it is unlikely to date from earlier than 1720, when the use of pitched pine became widespread. Before that time oak would have been more common. 

 

Research continues…so watch this space!