11-13 Main Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A two-storey building in a terrace, five windows wide to the first floor with large shop windows to the ground floor. Main entrance faces north. Roof looks like Bangor blue slates in regular courses, ending flush with gable to left, continuous with roof over numbers 7-9 to right; one flush rooflight. Smooth cement rendered chimney to gable at left hand side, with projecting string course; five short earthenware pots; large television aerial attached. Projecting moulded and bracketed eaves course, with concealed gutter behind it; circular section cast iron downpipe.

Wall of smooth render, painted, to first floor; moulded surrounds to first floor windows; projecting string course at cill level, with two plain string courses to each end, and between windows at intermediate levels. First floor windows rectangular timber sliding sash, vertically hung, 1 over 1, with horns; recessed frames. Electric cabling attached across first floor, running between eaves cornice and window heads. Ground floor comprises two large shop windows each vertically divided into two panes, located to each side of a central door, with a doorway at each extremity, with six panelled pilasters separating the five main elements. Painted timber fascia with moulded cornice and architrave over top of windows and doors, all woodwork painted blue, with shop sign painted in dull gold. Door to right, timber six-panel with bolection mouldings; rectangular fanlight over. Door in centre similar but fanlight blocked with plyboard, and door not in use. Door to left, timber, single glazed panel, set below rectangular fanlight now blocked, all set in recess between pilasters, with later glazed panel built out above, flush with door frame. Shop window frames, timber with deep wooden cill on moulded stone plinth, all painted blue.

Rear elevation of building not visible due to single-storey rear extension running almost to rear boundary; rear extension has modern roof of pre-formed metal sheeting, also used to cover later stairway from ground floor shop to first floor.

Setting: the building stands in the main street of the town, opening onto the pavement. It originally formed part of a uniform composition with the building abutting it to the right, a two-storey stuccoed building four windows wide to the first floor with similar detailing, but with a modern shop front; to the left it is abutted by a slightly lower two-storey public house with a modernised facade of pseudo-18th century appearance.

Historical information

Date of building not known but it appears on the OS map of 1832 and may be taken to date from the early 19th century; a later plaque on the adjoining premises, numbers 7-9 Main Street, which are clearly contemporary with this, which states that John Wesley preached here on 4th July 1771 may be taken to relate to a previous building on the site. A photograph in the Lawrence Collection in the National Library of Ireland shows it in its 19th century condition.

References - Primary

1. OS Map 1832, Co Antrim 40.
2. Photograph in Laurence Collection, National Library of Ireland (R3104)
3. Photograph in trhe green collection, UFTM (WAG528).

Secondary

1. D Corcoran, A Tour of East Antrim (Belfast, 1990), p4 (reproduces photograph from Green Collection).

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Z. Rarity
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

This is a building of early 19th century appearance which retains its original features on the entrance front, most notably the shop front of traditional design which now stands as the only remaining original shop front of any merit in the town.