Abbey

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A detached three-opening-wide three-storey rendered bank with Italianate detailing, built c.1870, located at the south side of High Street. Rectangular on plan, facing north.

Pitched natural slate roof, replacement chimneystack. Walling is painted render with rendered quoins over splayed plinth and moulded sill-courses between floors. Segmental arch-headed painted timber 1/1 sash windows, moulded architraves with keyblocks.

Principal (north) elevation is three windows wide to each floor above; ground floor has round arched-arcaded shopfront, four moulded archivolts spring from moulded imposts, diminished arch to right has painted timber moulded panel door with central fillet, plate glass tympanum, three arches to left have plate glass windows flanking recessed modern door, modern fascia over; first floor windows have drip moulds on console brackets.

East elevation is cement rendered and abutted by adjoining building, exposed section is blank.

Rear (south) elevation is cement rendered and has a variety of square-headed uPVC casement windows and two replacement timber doors.

West elevation is detailed as east and similarly abutted.

Setting:-
The bank is situated on High Street, to the west of the former Royal Arms Hotel building (HB11/13/009B, HB11/13/009C).

Roof: Natural slate
Walling: Painted render
Windows: Timber
RWG: uPVC

Historical information

The building is first shown in its current form on the third edition OS map of 1905-6.

In 1871/4, a large increase in the value of the property brings the total to £50, suggesting that the building was developed in its current form at this time on the site of an earlier property. In the revisions dated 1909-1917, the occupiers are Robert and Elizabeth Watson. Valuation Revisions from the 1930s also record the property as a ‘house, office and yard’.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/6/35/1-First Edition OS Map (1833)
2. PRONI OS/6/6/35/2-Second Edition OS Map (1854)
3. PRONI OS/6/6/35/3-Third Edition OS Map (1905-6)
4. PRONI VAL/1/D/6/6 -Town Plan of Omagh (1824-1844)
5. PRONI VAL/2/D/6/17 -Town Plan of Omagh (1849-1869)
6. PRONI VAL/12/B/6/36 -Valuation Revisions (1860-1929)
7. PRONI VAL/12/B/41/37-Valuation Revisions (1903-1929)
8. PRONI VAL/12/E/186/1/5 -Town Plan of Omagh (1882-1909)
9. PRONI VAL/12/F/7/7/1- Valuation Revisions (1930-35)

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

A detached three-storey rendered bank with Italianate detailing, built c.1870. The building has fine façade features with each floor detailed differently between the upper residential floors and the arcaded shopfront. Although the ground floor interior has been remodelled, most of the historic fabric survives and it is a good representative of a modest commercial building of the type and era.