6-8 Newry Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A substantial three storey / three bay mid-Georgian town house, in the classical tradition. The front is symmetrical, with central bay a half width of the other two. There is a two storey single bay extension abutting the left gable and tied into facade. The ground floor of the whole block is of a lower height than the floors above, giving the whole building a top heavy appearance.

Property is presently in two ownerships and both ground floors have been converted to commercial use, their shop fronts obscuring the lower portions of the first floor windows. Central and right bays are no.4. Left bay and extension are no.6 and 8. They form a single architectural composition.

Roof is pitched and gabled. That to Nos 6&8 is natural slate. Left gable is coped in tiles. There is a smooth rendered and corbelled chimney to gable. Eaves are corbelled and rainwater goods are cast iron to Nos 6&8. Left gable extension has a lean-to man-made slate roof concealed behind a parapet.

Front wall is rock faced ashlar granite with flush pointing. Extension to left gable is faced as main walls and finished by two shallow brick coped gablets just below eaves of main block.

Ground floor of No 6 has a mid Victorian shop front filling both its bays, remaining wall and stall riser is painted smooth render. At ground floor right is a four panelled door with brass furniture and narrow transom over (leads to upper floors). To its left is a shop window with painted granite cill, it is shuttered with two purpose built four panelled doors. To its left is the recessed four panelled (top two glazed) shop door with transom over. To either side of doors, and framing window are narrow timber pilasters resting on granite blocks; each has a raised decorative fin, astragal forming a frieze and a moulded head. Extended bay to left contains a wider but similarly detailed shop window with three shutter doors. The pilasters to extreme left and right of whole shop front rise as decorative corbels terminating a long timber fascia with moulded cornice over.

Each upper floor of main block contains five openings and the extension to left has a single window to each. To left bay (no.6&8) is a pair of 6/6 exposed box sliding sash windows which have not been truncated, as those of No 4 have. To second floor on all three bays, in line with openings below, are similar sash windows with painted dressed granite cills. The extension windows are similarly detailed.

Left gable is abutted by the two storey extension, its remaining wall gable is cement rendered and contains a small 1/1 attic window to right side. Extension walls are cement rendered and blank to left elevation.

Rear elevation of No 6 is abutted at ground floor by a single storey modern extension. Wall to left and central bays at first floor is partially rendered, snecked granite rubble with single large stones forming lintels. At first floor left there are two narrow 4/4 sliding sashes. At second floor windows are diminished in height and in line with those below. That to left is a modern top hung replacement, to its right is a 4/4 sliding sash. The rear gable of extension is rendered with a small modern window and advances at first floor to meet a two storey coach house, which encloses the yard.

Historical information

1790 datestone attests to year of construction. Both halves are described as one property in the 1834 valuation book. It then belonged to Alexander Adderly, M.D and measured 43ft6in x 26ft x 22ft, and also had cellars. It is possible that the ‘A’ on the datestone was Dr Adderly. Also at this time the addition to left gable is measured as 12ft x 24ft 6in x 20ft, and occupied by a Samuel Floyd.

‘Alexander, Adderly, surgeon.’ is listed as resident in Kilkeel in 1819, although it is uncertain whether it was at this address.

In the 1790s the young General Chesney of Packolet House (HB16/04/003) was familiar with the surgeon, ''Every Sunday, whatever the weather, the (Chesney) family walked the five miles to church in Kilkeel. On wet days the children arrived soaked and shivering to be thawed out before a blazing fire by Mrs Adderly, the doctors wife, who fed them on gingerbread to sustain them for the ordeal of church''.

By the 1862 valuation, the main house had been divided onto two semi-detached dwellings, occupied by a John Reid and Jane Annett.

The son of Mrs McErlaine, who lived in the house for 79 years until her death in 1998, provided the following information. The house and shop has been the family since c1900. The shop was millinery until c1985 when it closed, and has been vacant since. He provided a poster, dating from 1900 advertising the shop.

The photograph of the ground floor c1900 showing two separate shop fronts. One to left, on extension and one to right in main block (to left of central door). The left shop front had a four-panelled door with a four paned transom. To its immediate left was a twelve paned shop window, with masonry stallriser. Over all was a plain fascia, with thin brackets to either end. The right shop front had a sheeted door with five paned transom over, and a window to left. To left of window, to right of door and between the two are thin timber pilasters, which rise to a plain fascia with overhanging timber cornice. To right of central door on façade is a third shop front. It has a central door with three paned transom, narrow pilasters and fascia with overhanging cornice. 16 paned windows, both with granite cills, flank door.

A photograph of the property taken in 1951 shows no 4 to have a traditional timber shop front with central door, and angled fascia emblazoned 'John Quinn Ltd'. A 1962 photograph shows this shop front to have been replaced by the current modern one.

The 1951 photograph also illustrates that the central door between the two shop fronts is directly in line with the semicircular headed window on first floor (as opposed to left of its centre as it is today). The door depicted has a transom light, seems crudely placed in the facade and has no ashlar dressings like the window openings above. The doorway lintel is formed by the cill of the semicircular headed window which has a lower cill level (and its bottom sash is six paned) than it has today. The photograph also illustrates that the two first floor right windows (over Saweys shop) are 6/6 sliding sashes.

The central door (1951 photograph), seems to be a crude insertion, suggesting that the main entrance may have been elsewhere; which is strange as the building is symmetrical. One suggestion might be that the ground to the front was lowered and the cellar became the ground floor, which may be another way of explaining why the current ground floor is not as high as those above. If the ground level was originally a few feet higher, the main entrance may have been accommodated within the central first floor window opening (with semicircular head). The head may have formed a fanlight and steps may have risen from the higher ground level to the door. Level changes in the past in Kilkeel lead to the creation of the 'steps' at the junction of Newry Street (this street) and Greencastle Street, where the road is substantially lower than the buildings on either side; so this theory may be close to what happened here.

Primary sources:
1. Datestone on building.
2. PRONI – VAL 1B/390B, p104 (1834 valuation).
3. PRONI - VAL 1B/390A, p.118 (1862 valuation).
4. PRONI - OS 8/15/1/3 (1860 OS map).
5. PRONI - VAL 2B/3/81H.
6. T. Bradshaw 'General Directory of Newry, Kilkeel' 1820.
7. Photograph dated 1951 in Historic Monuments Record of Northern Ireland 5-33 Hill Street, Belfast BT1 2LA.
8. Photographs dated 1975 in Historic Monuments Record of Northern Ireland 5-33 Hill Street, Belfast BT1 2LA.
9. Photograph dated 1962 in ''From the Mountains to the Sea'' p.15 (Friars Bush 1989).
10. Owner in 1998
11. Poster in owners’ possession.
12. Photograph in owners’ possession.

Secondary Sources:
1. ''The Chesney Family'' The Mourne Observer 08/06/1956.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A very attractive mid-Georgian structure retaining much of its original character even though it has been subdivided and remodelled for commercial use at ground floor. Although retaining little internal fabric (where inspected) this building is very interesting, of an early date in the town and is still worthy of statutory protection.