Bishop's Parochial Houses

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A three-storey five-bay Gothic-revival style Bishop's house of local Schist with Dungiven Sandstone dressings and gabled side bays. Built in 1876.

Located on a triangular site to the west corner within the grounds of St Eugene's Cathedral.

Pitched natural slate roof with decorative clay ridge tiles. Gable walls of side bays extend above roof line with stone coping and gabled ridge stone with Celtic cross at apex to south elevation and schist sandstone dressed chimney stack to north elevation; cast-iron rainwater goods with ogee guttering on stone corbel brackets. Walls are of local blue/green schist stone coursed squared.

Central bay extends into dormer at top with carved coat of arms.

The gable end bays project with the right having a two-storey canted bay window topped with a quatrefoil pierced balcony. Central pointed arch trefoil recessed doorway, flanked by polished red granite columns and surmounted by similar balcony as bay window with coat of arms above. Bays have shouldered surrounds and horizontal 2/2 timber sliding sash windows.

Ground floor windows have central sandstone crocketed capital columns. First and second floors do not. Windows to ground and first floors have schist segmental arch above sandstone heads. All windows have shouldered heads, top window on end bays have sandstone carved pointed arch above, with un-carved coat of arms, and Gothic hood mould with head stops.

All windows are 2/2 timber sliding sash with chamfered reveals; rear elevation is of irregular fenestration including 1/1 timber sliding sash windows with coloured margin panes to stairwell behind.

Six-panel carved timber double doors with stop chamfers to principal entrance at front elevation; brass door fittings with decorative door knocker which has a Celtic motif. Gothic arch hood mould with label stops to door at east elevation.

Setting:
Set to the West side of the St Eugene's group of buildings (inc. HB 01/21/01 &03 and HB 01/21/22), the principal elevation faces south onto its own gardens within the complex; north elevation facing onto Infirmary Road; east elevation facing the Cathedral tower entrance porch; west elevation facing Creggan Street behind boundary wall of Schist with granite coping and wrought iron railing.

Materials:
Roof Natural Slate
RWG Cast Iron
Walling Schist & Dungiven Sandstone
Windows Stained glass tracery
Doors Original timber

Historical information

According to a datestone located on site, the three-storey five-bay Parochial House (and former Bishop’s residence) located within the grounds of St. Eugene’s Cathedral (see HB01/21/001) was constructed in 1876. The building was first added to the Annual Revisions in that period; the valuer noted that a terrace of former dwellings were demolished to make way for the residence and that the Parochial House was initially valued at £60 in 1876, but then raised to £85 upon its completion in 1877. Although the Parochial House was not finished until 1877, the proposed layout of the building was depicted on the Annual Revisions town plan of c. 1873; this map shows that the layout of the building has not been discernibly altered since its construction.

The Parochial House was designed by James Joseph McCarthy (1817-1882), a Dublin-based architect who was also responsible for the design of the adjoining Gothic Revival Cathedral. The Dictionary of Irish Architects states that McCarthy was the leading architect of Irish Catholic churches in the mid-Victorian period. McCarthy essentially designed the structure as two separate dwellings, with half of the building used by the parish priests and the other half utilised as the Bishop’s private residence. The Natural Stone Database records that McCarthy employed locally quarried Derry Schist and Barony Glen Sandstone in the masonry of the building (Rowan, p. 384; DIA; Natural Stone Database).

The rateable value of the Parochial House and Bishop’s Residence remained at £85 until the cancellation of the Annual Revisions in 1931. The first Bishop to reside in the building was The Most Rev. Francis Kelly, who was chiefly responsible for ensuring the construction of the Cathedral, and from 1877 until 1988 all the Bishops of the Diocese resided at the site (UAHS; St. Eugene’s website). The value of the Parochial House was raised to £150 under the First Revaluation of 1935 and remained at this level by the end of the Second Revaluation (1956-72).

The Parochial House and Bishop’s residence was listed in 1979. The Bishop of Derry vacated his portion of the building in 1988; since that time the former Bishop’s portion has been occupied by the Derry Diocese offices (the parish priests associated with St. Eugene’s Cathedral continue to dwell in the building. In 2010 the Parochial House underwent an extensive refurbishment when the roof was repaired and the exterior stonework of the building repaired and repointed; the church’s website notes that this work cost an estimated £448,000 and was the first major renovation to the exterior of the building carried out since its construction in 1876 (NIEA HB Records).

References

Primary Sources
1. PRONI OS/6/5/20/2 – Second Edition Ordnance Survey Map (1853)
2. PRONI VAL/12/E/157/1/7 – Annual Revisions Town Plan (c. 1873)
3. PRONI VAL/12/B/32/11G-ZA – Annual Revisions (1870-1897)
4. PRONI VAL/12/B/33/2C-2E – Annual Revisions (1898-1931)
5. PRONI VAL/3/B/6/4 – First Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1935)
6. PRONI VAL/4/B/5/17 – Second Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1956-72)
7. Ulster Town Directories (1877-1918)
8. First Survey Record – HB01/21/002 (1970)
9. First Survey Image – HB01/21/002 (No Date)
10. NIEA HB Records – HB01/21/002

Secondary Sources
1. Calley, D., ‘City of Derry: An historical gazetteer to the buildings of Londonderry’ Belfast: Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, 2013.
2. Ferguson, W. S; Rowan, A. J; Tracey, J. J., ‘List of historic buildings, groups of buildings, areas of architectural importance in and near the city of Derry’ Belfast: Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, 1970.
3. Rowan, A. J., ‘The Buildings of Ireland: North West Ulster’ London: Yale University Press, 2003.

Online Resources
1. Dictionary of Irish Architects - http://www.dia.ie
2. Natural Stone Database website - http://www.stonedatabase.com/
3. St. Eugene’s Cathedral website - http://www.steugenescathedral.com/storyofsteugenes.htm

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

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

Evaluation

A three-storey, five-bay, Schist & Dungiven Sandstone detail Gothic-revival style Bishop's house, built c.1876, to designs of James Joseph McCarthy, a Dublin-based architect who was also responsible for the design of the adjoining Gothic Revival Cathedral. The houses have group value with the other buildings within St Eugene's grounds - HB 01/21/01 &03 and HB 01/21/22. The exterior is a fine intact example and the interior layout has been largely retained with minimal modern alterations including infill of courtyard. Designed originally as two dwellings, today the Bishop's portion is used as diocesan centre offices.

General comments

Additional listing criteria apply - R-Age, S-Authenticity & T-Historic Importance