50-52 James Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

This is an attached two-and-a-half-storey rendered building c. 1835, that was originally occupied by three small properties including a former house, offices and a police barracks. The building is part of a long row of mixed terrace buildings along James Street.

The property now contains a shop and restaurant to the ground floor, and a beauty parlour to the first floor, with an apartment at attic level.

The building is rectangular in plan, with a single-storey extension to the rear.

The front West elevation is street fronted. It is composed of a shopfront to the left, a doorway to the centre and a shopfront to the right.
The cafe to the left has a period replacement shopfront, c. 1990.
The hot food takeaway shopfront to the right is of similar design.

The main central doorway is early 19th century Regency style and is set into a semi-circular headed recess. Rounded fluted pilasters with Ionic capitals are located to each side of the door and set on cut-stone plinth blocks. The pilasters support a horizontal entablature with a moulded Greek Revival pattern to the frieze and projecting moulded cornice. The entablature is surmounted by a radial fanlight set within the semi-circular headed recess.

At first floor above the doorway, there is a round-headed triplet window arrangement set on a shared sill, each with a 1/1 timber sash frame. Other windows are flat-headed, with some in paired arrangement.

The rear East elevation of the building contains an irregular assortment of painted timber casement windows covered by protective metal grills. Access to an upper level doorway is via a staircase with solid brick balustrades. The door is plain timber and is surmounted by a projecting tiled roof canopy set on timber brackets.

The South gable elevation has flat-headed windows, one at first floor and one at attic level, but is otherwise blank.

The single-storey flat-roofed extension, c. 1990, is set slightly below ground level with access steps down to a doorway at the rear. It contains small high level timber casement lights. It has uPVC rainwater goods. The return is surrounded by low cast-iron railings and faces onto the rear access yard.

There is ruled-and-lined render to the front elevation, with rendered quoins to either side, and dry-dash render to the rear. The roof has natural slate and contains three traditional roof lights; it is flanked by two polychromatic potless brick chimneystacks with profiled caps.

Setting:
The building is set on the rising sloped pavement to the eastern side of James Street. It is located on the southern edge of the commercial centre of Cookstown. The mixed terrace comprises mainly of Victorian buildings ranging in age from early to late nineteenth century.

Historical information

On the valuation plan of c.1838, this site is shown occupied by three small properties, of similar age, and identical breadth and height. That to the south is recorded in the valuation of January 1835 as a relatively newly-built dwelling (quality letter ‘1A’) occupied by a Hugh Hagan, with a relatively high rateable value of £11-2-9. Its dimensions are given as, 23ft x 30 x 21, with offices of 28 x 17½ x 14½ and 25 x 17 x 14, and a shed of 18½ x 9½ x 5. The central house was of similar age and occupied by a Mark Devlin and had a rateable valuation of £3-18-0. Its measurements are given as 12 x 30 x 21. The northernmost property was a police barrack, also relatively newly-built, valued at £5-10-6 and measuring 17 x 30 x 21.

In the 1859 valuation the present building is recorded, with a Henry Graves leasing it directly from the Gunning / Moore estate, and the rateable value a very respectable £34. Henry Graves was followed as occupant by a Charles H.P.D. Graves in 1883 and an Edith Kinley, as both resident and leaseholder, in 1887. In 1888 the building was converted to a police barracks, reverting to a private dwelling again in 1905, when a house within Loy Street was converted to provide a new barrack (present no.6 Loy Street, HB09/13/009).

A T.J. Harbison is noted as the occupant in 1908, acquiring the lease in 1912. The lease passed to Annie J. Harbinson sometime around c.1930, and by 1936 (at least) she was renting the building to a John Patterson. The property then went through a number of short-term occupants, including James Killops, Dr. J. MacLynn, Thomas M. Curry, Peter Cosgrove (who also held the lease for a period in the early 1950s), and Francis D. Flannigan, the latter becoming leaseholder as well in 1955. The building is recorded as containing a surgery from c.1957, with an Annie G. Cosgrove listed as the immediate lessor from around the same date; this remained as such until at least 1972.

References- Primary sources
1 ‘Pigot & Co's Provincial Directory of Ireland’, (Manchester, 1824)
2 PRONI OS/9/10/1 OS plan of Cookstown, 1833
3 PRONI VAL/1B/622A First valuation, Derryloran parish, 1834-c.1838
4 PRONI VAL/1D/6/2 Valuation plan of Cookstown, c.1838
5 Lewis, Samuel, ‘A topographical dictionary of Ireland…’ vol.1, (London, 1837)
6 ‘Slater's Commercial Directory of Ireland’, (Manchester, 1846)
7 PRONI VAL/2C/63 Second valuation, Union of Cookstown (Dublin, 1859) [This is the printed version of the second valuation. The handwritten version (which may have been more detailed and include property dimensions etc.) no longer exists. The printed volume merely provides names of tenants and leaseholders, and rateable values.]
8 PRONI VAL/2D/6/3/1-2 Valuation plan of Cookstown, 1859-82 [2 sheets]
9 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5A Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1860-63
10 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5B Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1864-68
11 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5C Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1868-81
12 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5D Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1881
13 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5E Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1881
14 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5F Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1882-90
15 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5G Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1882-88
16 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5J Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1889-94 [The reference number for this book is out of sequence in the
PRONI catalogue- the dates it covers are actually earlier than VAL/12B/37/5H.]
17 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5H Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1895-99
18 PRONI VAL/12B/37/5K Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1889-99
19 PRONI VAL/12E/171/1/1-2 Valuation plan of Cookstown, 1892-97 [2 sheets]
20 PRONI OS/33/1/1-5 OS plan of Cookstown, 1895 [5 sheets]
21 PRONI OS/9/10/2/1-2 OS plan of Cookstown, index map, 1895 [2 sheets]
22 PRONI OS/9/10/3/1-5 OS plan of Cookstown, 1895 [5 sheets]
23 PRONI VAL/12E/171/2/1-3 Valuation plan of Cookstown, 1897-1910 [3 sheets]
24 PRONI VAL/12B/37/7A Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1901-07
25 PRONI VAL/12B/37/7B Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1909-15
26 PRONI OS/33/2/1-4 OS plan, 1909 & 1918 [4 sheets]
27 PRONI VAL/12B/37/7C Annual valuation revision book, Cookstown ED, 1916-29
28 PRONI VAL/3G/142/1 /1-4 Valuation plan of Cookstown, 1936-37 [4 sheets]
29 PRONI VAL/3C/7/8 First general revaluation of Northern Ireland, Cookstown Urban, 1936-57
30 PRONI VAL/3G/142/2/1-4 Valuation plan of Cookstown, 1937-51
31 PRONI VAL/4B/6/10 Second general revaluation of Northern Ireland, Cookstown Urban vol.1, 1956-72
32 PRONI VAL/4B/6/11 Second general revaluation of Northern Ireland, Cookstown Urban vol.2E, 1956-72

Secondary sources
1 Oram, R.W. and Rankin, P.J., Historic buildings…Dungannon & Cookstown (Belfast, UAHS, 1971)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
I. Quality and survival of Interior

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Although somewhat altered both internally and externally, this remains a well proportioned example of a late-Georgian town house. This slightly asymmetric composition is enriched with a fine classical doorcase, and exceptional detailing to the entrance lobby.