4 John Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A detached three-bay two-storey Italianate former house, built c.1880, located on the east side of John Street. Rectangular on plan, facing west; modern semi-circular stairwell to east.

Pitched natural slate roofs, yellow brick chimneystacks with moulded corniced caps, octagonal terracotta chimneypots, half-round cast-iron gutters on painted timber 1/1 sashes and caved bracketed eaves. Walling is smooth rendered over plinth, chamfered quoins. Segmental arch-headed painted timber windows, lugged moulded architraves with diamond-headed keyblock over bracketed sills (ground floor is square headed).

Principal (west) elevation has a square-headed painted timber bolection six panelled door with brass door furniture, painted timber lintel over consol brackets, overlight, architrave with keyblock; remaining bays each have a single window.

North gable has a variety of windows (all without architraves), two to second floor apex are round-headed painted timber 2/2 sashes.

Rear (east) elevation is abutted by modern projecting bay (of no interest); remainder has variety of windows.

South gable is abutted to ground floor by adjoining building; exposed section is detailed as north gable.

Setting

The former house is situated on an elevated site on John Street, with a parking lot to north and an adjoining building to south.

Roof: Natural slate
Walling: Rendered
Windows: Timber
RWG: Cast-iron

Historical information

The building dates from c.1880 and first appears on the 1882 valuation town plan of Omagh, replacing a previous building on the site that is present on the Griffith’s Valuation town plan. It is not recorded in Annual Revision until 1895 where it is listed as occupied by Mrs Treanor and leased from the Representatives of the Reverend Robert Hamilton. It is a house, office and yard valued at £27.

Valuers’ notes of the period record that the cost of construction was £500 and that it is a two storey house with an attic and basement, although the basement is ‘merely a coal house’. It is built of rubble masonry and slated.

In 1934 valuers note that the house comprises a kitchen, scullery, pantry and two rooms downstairs with 6 bedrooms, a further room and a bathroom and W.C. upstairs. The occupier is now Jospeph Mulgrew and the value is amended to £29 at an unknown date, post 1934.

In 1949 Francis Mullan is now the occupier and it is recorded that he has built a shop in the adjacent area to the south, formerly occupied by his outbuildings, which is being leased to Arthur Kelly as a chemist’s shop.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI VAL/2/D/6/7 – Griffith’s Valuation Town Plan of Omagh (1849-1869)
2. PRONI VAL/12/E/186/1/5 – Annual Revisions Town Plan of Omagh (1882-1909)
3. PRONI VAL/12/B/41/36/A-M – Annual Revision Records (1860-1929)
4. PRONI VAL/12/A/6/33 – Revising Valuers’ Office Notebook (1895-98)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

A detached three-bay two-storey Italianate former house, built c.1880, located on the east side of John Street. The Italianate-style former house is well proportioned, with a simple plan form and typical detailing. However, it is of a late date and not one of the best examples of the type because its interest has been compromised by extensive interior alterations.