Shed next to public house, 23-25 Railway Street, Strabane, Co Tyrone, BT82 8EG

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Single storey brick-built shed of c.1900 with Belfast Truss roof formerly a commercial garage but presently disused and in poor condition. The building is located on the N side of Railway Street, Strabane, next to a public house.

The building is roughly rectangular in plan but with the S elevation skewed slightly; it measures roughly 13m x 7.5. It is constructed in brick but the front road-facing (S) gable is rendered. This elevation originally had a large vehicle entrance, but this has been boarded up with the whole gable now painted (with a large ‘Guinness’ advertisement painted thereon). The longer E elevation is in painted brick and has four evenly-spaced window openings three of which have retained glazing. The N gable is largely clad in timber with a small area to the gable itself in corrugated plastic. Much of the cladding to the gable area has fallen away. The shed is abutted to this side by a lower single storey building (another shed).

The curved roof is covered in felt (now badly decayed and fallen off in places).

Historical information

This building may date from c.1900. Until recently it was used as a commercial garage but now belongs to the neighbouring public house.

The Belfast truss was developed in the mid-nineteenth century to meet the demand for efficient, lightweight and long span roofs brought about by the industrial revolution. A detailed description of the historical development of the Belfast truss is included in the record for HB18/08/139. In brief, the first known reference to a curved wooden felted roof structure supported by bowstring girders is in an advertisement in the Dublin Builder for 1866 by the Belfast firm of felt-makers, McTear & Co. McTear’s continued making trusses until they went out of business in 1908.

A second Belfast felt supplier, Anderson & Co., began to produce trusses, to a slightly different design, in 1886. In 1896, Anderson’s launched their Mk II version; promoted as maximising long spans whilst maintaining light weight. This model was subsequently used by other companies, and is referred to by historians as the Belfast truss, although this term is widely used to apply to all timber bowstring trusses where the internal bracing members meet not on the bottom of the truss as was the convention but on the top curved member.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Single storey brick-built shed of perhaps c.1900 with Belfast Truss roof formerly a commercial garage but presently disused and in poor condition.

General comments

Surveyed as part of the Belfast Roof Truss survey.