Site of former no.29 Townsend Street, Strabane, Co Tyrone

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Site, on the southwest side of Townsend Street, formerly occupied by a single-storey terraced dwelling of possible pre 1833 construction, demolished some time after 1983, with the vacant ground now landscaped.

The First Survey description of 11 February 1970 contains a general description of the terraces to which this house belonged; it reads:
‘Single-storey terraces with whitened stone walls and slated roofs. There are a mixture of sheeted and modern entrance doors. Windows are mostly drop hung with full glazing bars together with modern insertions’.

Historical information

This site is shown developed on the OS map of 1833-34. Unfortunately the plan of Strabane drawn up to accompany the valuation of 1832-34, has been lost, making it extremely difficult to trace any details of the buildings within the town at this date any degree of certainty. A read through the valuation book reveals, however, that the much of Townsend Street was then made up of modest single / one and a half-storey dwellings, and, as such, it is likely that the former no.29 was standing in some form at that date.*

The plan accompanying the second valuation of 1857 shows us that there were two houses on the site at that point, the property to the northwest occupied an Edward Ward with that to the southeast in the hands of a Margaret McCaffrey, both leasing directly from a Thomas Neilance. The valuers do not supply the dimensions of either building or a ‘quality letter’, (which would have given an indication of the age of the structures), however their the low rateable values strongly suggest that both were modest single-storey buildings and as such probably those indicated on the 1830s OS map.

By 1873 Thomas Ward had succeeded as the resident of the property to the northwest, with a Jeremiah Longley residing next door. Longley remained there until 1877 when a John Tomany is listed by the valuers as the householder. In 1885 the northwestern house disappears as a separate entry in the valuation book, reappearing in an entry of 1888 merged with its neighbour as a ‘new’ larger dwelling. John Tomany continued to occupy the extended house, acquiring the freehold in 1892 and remaining as resident until 1896. After this the house was rented by a William Henderson (1897/98-1900), then Robert Blair (c.1900-03), Edward Campbell (1903-06), Patrick Dooher (1906-24), John Kane (1924-c.33), Arthur Forbes (c.1933-39), Sarah Tate (1939-58), J.J. Tate (1958-59), and H.H. O’Neill, who remained there (as occupant and freeholder) until 1972 at least.

The long terrace to which no.29 belonged was demolished some time after 1983, with the site, (along the banks of the Mourne River), subsequently landscaped.

References- Primary sources
1 ‘Pigot & Co’s City of Dublin and Hibernian Commercial Directory (Manchester 1824)
2 PRONI VAL/1B/638A First valuation, Camus parish (1832-c.38)
3 PRONI VAL/1B/638B First valuation, Camus parish (1832-c.38)
4 PRONI VAL/1B/638C First valuation, Camus parish (1832-c.38)
5 PRONI OS/6/5/5/1 OS map, County Tyrone sheet 5 (1833-34)
6 Lewis, Samuel, ‘Topographical history of Ireland’ (London, 1837)
7 ‘Slater’s National Commercial Directory of Ireland (Manchester, 1846)
8 ‘Slater’s National Commercial Directory of Ireland (Manchester, 1856)
9 PRONI VAL/2B/6/41 Second valuation, Camus parish (1857)
10 PRONI VAL/2D/6/18A Valuation town plan of Strabane (1857 [-59])
11 PRONI VAL/2D/6/18B Valuation town plan of Strabane (1857 [-59]) [PRONI also holds a microfiche copy of this plan, catalogued under the ref. T/2933/4/252.]
12 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31A Annual valuation revision, Strabane ED(1860-64)
13 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31B Annual valuation revision, Strabane ED (1864-73)
14 ‘Slater’s Royal National Commercial Directory of Ireland’ (Manchester, 1870)
15 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31C Annual valuation revision, Strabane ED (1874-81)
16 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31D Annual valuation revision, Strabane ED (1882-91)
17 PRONI OS/8/25/1/1-17 OS town plan of Strabane (1883)
18 PRONI OS/9/22/2/1-17 OS town plan of Strabane (1883)
19 PRONI VAL/12E/187/1/1-12 Valuation town plan of Strabane (1884 [-1908])
20 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31E Annual valuation revision, Strabane ED (1892-96)
21 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31F Annual valuation revision, Strabane ED (1892-96)
22 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31G Annual valuation revision, Strabane UD (1897-1910)
23 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31H Annual valuation revision, Strabane UD (1897-1910)
24 PRONI OS/8/25/2/1-3 OS town plan of Strabane (1905)
25 ‘Belfast and Province of Ulster Directory’ (Belfast, 1905)
26 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31J Annual valuation revision, Strabane UD (1911-22)
27 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31K Annual valuation revision, Strabane UD (1911-22)
28 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31L Annual valuation revision, Strabane UD (1922-31)
29 PRONI VAL/12B/42/31M Annual valuation revision, Strabane UD (1922-31)
30 PRONI VAL/3B/7/14 First General Revaluation of Northern Ireland, Strabane UD (1935
31 PRONI VAL/3C/7/23 First General Revaluation of Northern Ireland, annual revisions, Strabane UD (1936-57)
32 PRONI VAL/3G/159/1/1-3 Valuation town plan of Strabane (1936-55)
33 PRONI VAL/3G/159/2/1-3 Valuation town plan of Strabane (1951-55) [Sheets 1 and 3 are currently missing.]
34 EHS OS map (1:10,000 scale), sheet 72 (1983)

Secondary sources
1 Bradley, Jim, et al, ‘The Fair River Valley: Strabane Through the Ages’ (Belfast, Ulster Historical Foundation, 2000)

Other
references
1 EHS HB10/14/020 First Survey report (11 Feb 1970)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Site, on the southwest side of Townsend Street, formerly occupied by a single-storey terraced dwelling of possible pre 1833 construction, demolished some time after 1983, with the vacant ground now landscaped.