26 Beechwood Avenue

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Compact and mildly picturesque two storey detached house of c.1894-5 with canted bays, decorative ‘balcony’, gabled dormers and stucco façade. The property is set on a slight rise at the intersection of Beechwood Avenue and Marlborough Street.

The front elevation is symmetrical and faces roughly S. To the centre of the ground floor is a panelled timber double door with simple panelled jambs topped with curved brackets, and a rectangular three-pane fanlight. Three splayed tiled steps to doorway.

To the left of the doorway is a canted bay with a sash window to each face of the bay, all set on a cill course. The central window is larger and has vertical glazing bars (2/2); the other windows are plain. To the right of the doorway is an identical bay. Both bays have flat roofs topped with a ‘balcony’ which stretches between both bays (and over the doorway). The ‘balcony’ has a decorative cast iron balustrade. To the first floor are three segmental headed sash windows (2/2).

The W gable has a window to right on both floors, both with plain sash windows, but with a segmental head to that on the first floor. The E gable repeats that to W in mirrored fashion bur with another window set at a low first floor level to centre-right.

To the centre of the rear elevation there is a small single storey lean-to with two windows, with modern frames, to its N face, and a partly glazed door to its E face. To the left of the lean-to there is a squarish window with modern frame. To the right of the lean-to there is a sash window with Georgian panes to the lower light (6). To the right of this is a small coal shed. To the first floor there are three windows, those to centre and right as first floor front but with flat heads. That to left is set at a slightly lower level and has a plain sash frame.

The façade is finished in painted lined render. The gabled roof is slated and has a overhang with exposed rafter ends to rear and barges with decorative tie beams to the gables. To the front there are three (relatively small) gabled dormers with four pane frames, timber sides and slated roofs with plain barges. To the rear there are three Velux windows. Two rendered chimney stacks with projecting bases and moulded coping. Cast iron rw goods.

To the front of the house there is a small sloping garden with stone steps leading from an original looking wrought iron pedestrian gate. To the rear of the house there is a small enclosed yard with high retaining wall to the higher ground to N. There is a lean-to shed to this wall.

Historical information

Beechwood Avenue and Marlborough Terrace were laid out in the 1880s with most of the houses in place by the late 1890s. Sources suggest that this particular property dates from c.1894-5.

The house was acquired by 1949 by Edward McAteer, around the same time as he was elected as (Stormont) MP for Mid Derry. It remained McAteer’s home for the duration of his political career, a career which witnessed his becoming leader of the Nationalist Party in 1953, and leader of the official opposition at Stormont in 1965. He lost his parliamentary seat in 1969 to John Hume, who, incidentally, happened to be his near neighbour at the time- living at 7 Beechwood Avenue.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI VAL/12B/32/11a etc., annual valuation revision books, 1864-c.1897
2 PRONI VAL/12E/157/1/9 Valuation map (9), City of Londonderry, 1873-1909

Secondary sources
1 Kate Newman, ‘Dictionary of Ulster biography’ (QUB, 1993)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Compact and mildly picturesque two storey detached house of c.1894-5 with canted bays, decorative ‘balcony’, gabled dormers and stucco façade. Former home of the leader of the Nationalist Party. The building however, is not of special architectural or historic interest.

General comments

Surveyed due to request by Derry City Council to consider building for listing. The value to be placed on the importance of the former occupant relative to the listing of the house was the key issue to assess. In the opinion of the PHB the building is not of special architectural or historical interest on its own. The building was not integral to the activities which made the former occupant famous.