15 Market Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A 3 bay wide, 2 storey with lower floor, gabled and slated house with single storey, detached wings containing bridewell and store.

The west elevation has a central projecting flat roofed porch with side walls forming plain wide pilasters in ashlar stone supporting deep frieze and thin cornice. Entrance door, timber framed with bottom sheeted panel and 4 equal square glazed panels above. On each side a single segmental headed 4 pane double hung sliding sash window with sandstone voissoirs and cill. At 1st floor 3 similar windows. Above a ½ round metal gutter and 2 downpipes. Walls faced with coursed white limestone with sandstone plinth. Natural slated roof and low gable chimney stacks, ashlar faced with cornice capping. Walls project from each gable creating a shallow forecourt and these walls return along the access from Market Street which also serves the east side of the Corn store (see HB09/06/004I). On the other side of this wall there is a considerable drop to the lower floor of the house and the surrounding garden.

The east elevation is similar to west but 3 stories high with central projecting gabled porch (a recent addition). A plain stringcourse flush with the coursed white limestone walling marks the ground floor level. Each gable is of similar stonework with bold sandstone quoins and windowless. A narrow passage at both gables separates the bridewell and store for the house. Both are built of coursed white limestone without sandstone quoins, gabled, slated and ridges at right angles to that of house. The bridewell has 2 cell doors entered from the passageway. In the gable a 3 narrow light window in a sandstone surround lighting one cell and a similar window in the north long wall lighting the other cell. The store on the south side of the house is of similar construction but has segmental headed door on S wall, a small window and an opening.

The house (former barrack) is set in a sunken garden with enclosing wall all round built and finished as before described. Access to the garden is by gated steps from Market Street.

Historical information

The house is a former police barrack erected and completed by 1839. Designed by W J Booth, though the windows of house appear to have been replaced at a later date. The rear porch is a much later addition, being quite recent. The property is now in the possession of John Glover Ltd. The building is indicated as a police barrack on the O.S. Map of 1856.

References

Primary Sources
1. O.S. Map 1832 Rev. 1856 Londonderry sh. 46.
2. O.S. Memoirs of Ireland, Parishes of Co Londonderry XI, 1821, 1833, 1836-7 p. 39
Ed by Angelique Day and Patrick McWilliams Q.U.B.
3. Curl J.S. Moneymore and Draperstown UAHS p. 35.
4. Notes, 1st Survey, E.H.S. Hill Street, Belfast

Secondary Sources
1. Lewis, Topographical Dictionary of Ireland, p. 388

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
E. Spatial Organisation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

V. Authorship
X. Local Interest
Z. Rarity
Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance

Evaluation

An interesting and intriguing composition of well proportioned sturdy house built as a constabulary barracks, complete with bridewell, and set in a sunken walled garden and is a thoughtful and ingenious solution to a security building in the early Victorian period.