A blog of sketches of historic buildings - Marks of Time

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17/5/2017

46. St Teresa’s church Sion Mills 1963.
By 1963 the use of decoration on modern buildings was becoming more acceptable again. Here, a massive recreation of the last supper was commissioned from artist Oisin Kelly and mounted as a screen across the front of the building. It is not as much decorated building as building displaying artwork. The building is designed to mimic a classical temple, a form used for many churches in the past.

481.

28/4/2017

38. Tudor Revival Stables of Sion House- 1884
The style was employed for other villages developed by enlightened industrialists such as Bourneville near Brimingham by Cadburys (1890’s) and Port Sunlight by Lever Brothers near Liverpool (1880’s). Cadbury apparently visited Sion Mills in advance of his development. Also in the style and by the same architect are the stables. These have been recently conserved to a high standard they house a museum and café.

480.

27/4/2017

37. Tudor Revival Gate Lodge to Sion House- 1884
Sion Gate Lodge is based upon a careful examination of Sixteenth Century English precedents and heralds Sion House beyond. Its architect, F.W. Unsworth, was influenced by the Arts and Crafts Movement which had grown out of a concern for the effects of industrialisation on design, and interest in traditional skills, and in the lives of ordinary people. The Tudor Revival style, in his view, reflected an earlier, simpler, age.

479.

25/4/2017

36. Late Nineteenth Century Merchants House, Sion House -1884

Sion House just off the main street was the home of the Herdman family,- owners of the mill and builders of the village. This illustration is based upon a 1950’s photograph. Today, it has lost its chimneys and glazed conservatory. The half-timbered nature of the building is a result of a remodelling of a previous Italianate villa by leading London architect W. F. Unsworth in 1884.

478.

24/4/2017

35. Expanding Industry – Herman’s Mill, Sion Mills 1853.
One of the most successful linen companies in the Strabane area was Herdman’s. Two brothers from Belfast, wishing to expand took a lease on an existing corn mill on the site in 1835 and by the 1850’s things were going so well that the prominent Belfast architect William Henry Lynn was employed to build a new mill nearby with a fashionable ‘Italianate’ tower. The tall brick chimney was built in 1877. In a 1919 hydroelectric power station was installed on site. The name ‘Sion’ derives from the Gaelic word ‘Sidhean’, meaning a fairy hill.

April 20th, 2017

20/4/2017

32. The impact of the Railway. – Camus Bridge, 1850

The rail line along the Mourne and Strule valley to Omagh criss-crosses the winding river along its route and a number of fine, and very long, bridges still survive. These are made of riveted iron sheets supported on massive steel girders and date from 1910-11. Cast-iron girder trellis bridges preceded them and before that, in 1850, the bridges were wooden. The changes were needed because of the rapid improvement in rolling stock. The railway became part of the Great Northern Railway Company (Ireland) in 1876.

339.

10/4/2016

The Flax Spinner, a sculpture Sion Mills main street recalling the work of the mill that created the village. Artist: Eamonn O'Doherty

338

9/4/2016

338. www.Marksoftime.com
Herdman’s Mill, Sion Mills. Down from the main street along the riverside is the mill. First constructed in 1835 the main part of the complex dates from 1853. Badly damaged by fire in 2011 it is still an important building and an important landmark in the surrounding countryside

337.

7/4/2016

St Teresa’s church Sion Mills is on the main street of the village and dates from 1963. Like a modern version of a classical temple it sits on a plinth of steps, though its frieze is not within its pediment but along the front facade. This huge drawing of the last supper by Oisin Kelly is a powerful piece of modern art and well worth experiencing at first hand. Architect: Patrick Haughey

336.

5/4/2016

Sion Mills Presbyterian Church on the main street, constructed in 1865, predates the half timbered buildings. It was designed by John Guy Ferguson of Derry. It is very similar in design to the former Church of Ireland in Burt Co Donegal, designed by the same architect and also complemented by a spire of yellow brick. Beyond the church in this view is the primary school of 1879.