EGLINTON POST OFFICE

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Detached ten-bay single-storey former post office building with central gabled three-bay two-storey block surmounted by a corbelled brick pediment and circular red brick window (now bricked up) flanked by single storey hipped roof wings. Built c.1835 with rough-cast rendered walls with a pitched and hipped natural slate roof and projecting rear returns (20th century additions) to the side wings. Rectangular on plan, set on a corner site at the junction of Main Street and Cottage Row within the village of Eginton.

Pitched and hipped natural slate roof with black clay ridge tiles and projecting eaves; large rendered triple chimney stack (chimneys rotated at 45 degrees from main stack), centred on ridge to two storey central block; aluminium ogee guttering to brick eaves discharging to a cast aluminium circular downpipe supported on corbelled red brick on front elevation.

Principal (S) elevation is of painted rough-cast render with smooth rendered plinth; all window openings are square-headed on masonry sills. Replacement timber sliding sashes (with horns) to the central pedimented block (2/2 lights) and to the left side wing (3/3 lights); Top hung casement windows to the right side wing, made to replicate 2/2 sliding sashes with artificial horns applied to top lights. Main entrance door to central block is slightly recessed replacement 4 panel timber (painted), one step up from external ground level.
Side wings each have timber replacement glazed doors, divided into six equal panes ,with side lights; there are two such doors to the right side. Pediment to central block outlined in round-edged corbelled red brick headers topped by projecting red brick string string course; central porthole opening (bricked up) with double row of red brick headers to surround. Corbelled brick headers and string course continue to east and west eaves to support painted timber eaves board and gutter. Projecting modern signboards fixed above windows to side wings.

West elevation is of painted rough-cast render; hipped natural slate roof with black clay ridge tiles and aluminium rain water goods; no openings to this elevation save for a small extract vent and timber horizontal battens that are assumed to have supported signage.

North elevation to the rear is much altered; two storey central two storey block retains corbelled red brick pedimented gable to match front (without porthole); openings have top and side hung timber casement windows and a replacement four panelled door with glazed upper panels. Modern single storey extensions with fibre cement slated roofs to both sides - hipped to left (E), replacement casement timber and uPVC windows, sheeted timber door and 4 panelled uPVC door to right side. Aluminium ogee gutter terminating in uPVC downpipes.

East elevation is of single storey with rear extension, hipped slate roof with replacement timber casement window, ogee aluminium gutter and uPVC downpipe. Square headed openings contain timber casement windows. Circular sign with leaf pattern applied to left side.

Roof Natural Slate/ Fibre cement slate (extensions)
RWG uPVC & cast aluminium
Walling Painted rough-cast render
Windows Timber sliding sash & timber/ uPVC casements

Setting:
Located on the north side of Main Street, Eglinton to the east of the village centre and adjacent to the cricket pavillion.

Historical information

Originally built as a carpenter’s house, shop and store, the construction of this building coincided with a period of active redevelopment by the Grocers’ Company of London of the village then known as Muff. In 1836 John Wiggins described the building as follows: ‘This building is newly erected in lieu of the miserable shed before used … and besides be a place of security for many articles of company property which require protection’, adding that it was a ‘plain building [which] is yet so contrived as to be very ornamental to the village’. It would appear to be the structure identified in the First Valuation fieldbook of c. 1835 as the Houston House and offices; it received the valuation of £5 17s 8d.

The Primary Valuation ‘house book’ of 1856 listed the building as the Grocers’ Company’s timber yard. The dimensions of the buildings were given as follows:

Building Length Breadth Height
House 23 23½ 17
House wing 7 4 8
Office wing of house 31 20 10
Office 32 20 10

Griffith’s Valuation (1858) shows the property as being in the direct possession of the Grocers’ Company with the buildings described as comprising a caretaker’s house and offices; its valuation was £12.

In 1877, the part of the Grocers’ estate was put up for sale, the building was still being used as the carpenter’s dwelling and yard. The purchaser was James Davidson and by 1878/9 this property was being leased by Davidson to Henry Patton who operated a general merchant business from these premises. The Valuation Revision Books show that when Patton took over the tenancy ‘caretakers’ house’ became simply ‘house’, while in 1882 the valuation of the buildings was reduced to £10. In 1885 the word ‘Public’ was added, indicating that Patton was now operating licensed premises.

Henry Patton died in May 1906 and his son James took over the business. In the House and Building Return of both the 1901 and 1911 censuses the business operating from these premises was described as a spirit grocery. By 1911 the premises also included a Post Office. The Valuation Revision Books do not note this change of use until 1923 when the property is denoted as comprising a house, shop, Post Office, offices, yard and garden. In that year the valuation of the buildings was increased to £16, but reduced to £12 in 1925. By 1927 the property was in the possession of George Quinn. In the Annual Revisions List of the First General Revaluation, 1936-57, Bridget Quinn was listed as the occupier of the property. In the 1960s it was used as a dwelling, post office and chemist. Later the Department of Agriculture had an office in the building. Reflecting the three sections of the building – the central block and wings on either side of it – it was given the postal address of 32-36 Main Street.

An NIEA inspection report of February 1990 found that no. 32 had been ‘practically rebuilt’ and there was a new extension to the rear. By 1995 the building was derelict apart from one wing which was used as a video rental shop. In 1998 a flat-roofed extension to no. 36 that had been built in the 1960s was demolished. In the same year there were proposals to undertake alterations and extensions to convert the building into retail units and a dwelling. The renovation of the central block had been completed by October 2001. By 2009 the entire building had been refurbished.

References
1. PRONI, First Valuation fieldbook, 1830s VAL/1/B/550A
2. PRONI, Primary Valuation ‘house book’, 1856, VAL/2/B/5/550
3. PRONI, Griffith’s Valuation, 1858
4. PRONI, Valuation Revision Books, 1860-1929 – VAL/12/B/32/6A-F
5. PRONI, Ordnance Survey 6-inch map, 1830 – OS/6/5/15/1
6. PRONI, Ordnance Survey 6-inch map, 1853 – OS/6/5/15/2
7. PRONI, Ordnance Survey 6-inch map, 1905 – OS/6/5/15/3
8. PRONI, Ordnance Survey 6-inch map, 1924 – OS/6/5/15/4
9. PRONI, Valuation Revision Books, 1860-1930 – VAL/12/B/32/6A-F
10. PRONI, Annual Revisions List of the First General Revaluation, 1936-57, VAL/3/C/6/8
11. NIEA, First Survey Card
12. NIEA, HB Records

Secondary sources
1. Alan Rogers, The Twice-Born Village: Muff Eglinton (Co. Londonderry) (New University of Ulster, 1984)
2. James Stevens Curl, The Londonderry Plantation, 1609-1914 (Chichester, 1986)
3. Brian Mitchell, Historic Eglinton (1994)
4. Jan Ducker, ‘The Old Post Office, Eglinton’ in Review, no. 6 (Foyle Civic Trust, 1995), pp 7-8

Online sources
1. 1901 and 1911 census returns: www.census.nationalarchives.ie

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

S. Authenticity
R. Age
T. Historic Importance
U. Historic Associations
X. Local Interest
Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance

Evaluation

Detached symmetrical ten-bay former carpenter’s house, shop and store, dating from c.1835, situated on Main Street, at the junction with Cottage Row to the east of Eglinton village; the name of the architect is unknown. The building is well proportioned with two-storey block flanked by single storey hipped roofed wings and despite casement windows and some uPVC doors that detract, it retains some external features, character and style consistent for its time. The brick corbelling and circular window to the central pediment are particularly distinctive details. Important from a social perspective given its history as former public house, spirit grocer and Post Office, it is set behind rubble schist stone walling with simple iron gates hung on red brick pillars to the side entrance that further enhance its suburban setting.