St. Eugene's Convent School

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Two storey, nine bay school building of rough-coursed squared local schist with Barony Glen sandstone dressings and chamfered projecting base. Built 1854. Gabled bay projecting at each end. Casement windows on ground floor and double pointed arch on first floor. Projecting central bay with pointed arch doorway, paired pointed arch windows to first floor with hipped slate roof with trefoil vents to each side and cupola above.

Front elevation faces East onto Francis Street. The pointed arch entrance doorway with hood-moulding and label stops all in a breakfront with small trefoil pointed arch niches to either side. Either side of central bay are 3 square headed windows on ground and first floors and a cast-iron conservation rooflight to main slate roof. Sandstone string course between ground and first floors and to sill level on first floor of projecting bays. Projecting gabled bays have square headed triple light windows on ground floor and twin lancet with oculus plate tracery window on first floors. Gable wall of projecting bays extend above roof line with stone coping and kneeler stone to eaves, mid-ridge and apex with metal finial at apse end.

West elevation faces onto school playground with projecting gabled end bays repeating the fenestration and window style of the East elevation. Projecting central bay has pointed arch entrance doorway flanked by side lights with hood-moulding and label-stops. Paired pointed arch windows to first floor sill course and hood-moulding with label-stops. Above is a circular plate tracery stained glass window with hood-moulding and label-stops and eight small quatrefoil cusps surrounding seven cusps at the centre. Gable walls of projecting bays extend above roof line with stone coping and kneeler stone to eaves, mid-ridge and apex with carved stone cross finial at apse end of central bay.

North elevation; three bay with square headed casement windows to ground and first floors. Fire door to west end on ground and first floor with external metal fire escape staircase descending to ground level. Sill course to first floor. Stone cornice to eaves supported by stone corbels and cupola centred mid-ridge above.

South elevation; repeated fenestration and window style of North elevation.

Decorative two-hole crested ridge tiles with alternating roll top ridge tile to pitched slate roof.

Three corniced sandstone chimneystacks centred on ridge of main roof with clay pots.

Setting:
Located on a triangular site to the East side of St Eugene's Cathedral grounds facing east onto Francis Street, behind railings onto pavement, with rear of school facing onto a bitmac schoolyard. The school forms part of a group of buildings on a prominent site to the North of the city, south of Brooke Park and with roads to all boundaries of the Cathedral complex.

Materials:
Roof: Slate with crested and rolled ridge tiles.
Rainwater goods: Cast Iron
Walling; Sandstone
Windows: Timber casements
Door: Timber panelled.

Historical information

St. Eugene’s Convent School, a two-storey nine-bay Gothic schoolhouse, was originally constructed in 1852-54 for the Christian Brothers. The school was vacated by the Roman Catholic order almost immediately after its completion. Ledwidge states that the Sister of Mercy (based on Pump Street) took over the new building in 1854 whilst the Christian Brothers moved their all-boys school to the ‘Brow-of-the-Hill’ school in the Bogside. The Sisters of Mercy were invited to Derry in 1848 by the Bishop of Derry, Edward McGinn. The Sisters resided at Pump Street at the Convent of Mercy (see HB01/19/067A) and established their first all-girls school there before moving to the ‘Brow-of-the-hill’ in 1850. The two-storey seminary proved to be too small for the overcrowded girl’s school and in 1854 the Sisters of Mercy and Christian Brothers exchanged places (Ledwidge; Sisters of Mercy).

The original layout of the schoolhouse on Francis Street is not known as the addition of wings and the enhancement of the entrance in 1898 has masked the original appearance of the building. The school was not depicted on the second edition Ordnance Survey map (1853) although it was included in Griffith’s Valuation (1856) which described it as a national schoolhouse valued at £50. The Ulster Town Directories note that classes at the ‘National Female School’ at St. Eugene’s were predominantly taught by the Sisters of Mercy who were partially aided by monitresses (UTD).

There was little change to the schoolhouse at Francis Street until 1898 when the school was extended by Edward J. Toye. A local architect, Toye (1857-1932) established an independent practise in 1885 and predominantly carried out work on behalf of the Catholic Church in the city. He was also responsible for the design of the adjoining gate lodge (HB01/21/022), the spire at St. Eugene’s Cathedral (HB01/21/001) and wings at St. Columb’s College (HB01/16/004). Toye installed the terminal wings to the convent school and also carried out an enhancement of the Francis Street entrance. The plaque located over the entrance was installed at the time of the renovation and reads: ST EUGENE’S CATHEDRAL / CONVENT / PUBLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL’S / 1898.’ The Natural Stone Database records that the renovated building was primarily constructed of locally-quarried Derry Schist, whilst Scottish-imported Giffnock Sandstone was employed as a secondary material to the windows and corners (NSD; DIA).

Following the extension work, the value of St. Eugene’s Convent School was increased to £77. The two-storey Infant’s school located on the opposite side of Francis Street was constructed in 1914 to provide additional accommodation space for the ever-expanding school. The value of the original Convent School was increased to £260 under the First Revaluation of 1935, and further raised to £384 by the end of the Second Revaluation of property in 1972. The former Convent School was listed in 1979 and since 1991 the two school buildings have been collectively known as St. Eugene’s Primary School.

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/2/B/5/16H – Griffith’s Valuation (1856)
4. PRONI VAL/12/B/32/11A-ZA – Annual Revisions (1860-1897)
5. PRONI VAL/12/B/33/2C-2F – Annual Revisions (1898-1931)
6. PRONI VAL/3/B/6/4 – First Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1935)
7. PRONI VAL/4/B/5/17 – Second Revaluation of Property in Northern Ireland (1956-72)
8. Ulster Town Directories (1852-1918)
9. First Survey Record – HB01/21/003 (1970)
10. First Survey Image – HB01/21/003 (No Date)
11. NIEA HB Records – HB01/21/003

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. Sisters of Mercy website - http://www.sistersofmercy.ie/ireland_britain/northern/2011_lc_derry.cfm

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

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

Evaluation

Two storey, nine bay school building of rough-coursed squared local schist with Barony Glen sandstone dressings and chamfered projecting base, built 1854, with gabled bay projecting at each end; gabled bays an 1898 extension to designs of prominent architect EJ Toye. The school is an important building on the eastern boundary of the grounds of St Eugene's Cathedral, parochial house and gate lodge, with materials and details complementary to the other three buildings. Despite the loss of original windows, its interior is largely intact; it is well proportioned and remains a building of considerable architectural interest. Its value is increased by its being part of a group of prominent buildings of civic, historical and social importance.

General comments

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