16 Church Square

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Three storey / three bay building comprising shop (left) and house (right), set in a terrace on E side of Church Square, facing the former Market House (HB16/08/008).

Pitched natural slate roof with two painted rendered chimneys – one to left gable and one on centre of ridge; both have single tall octagonal yellow terracotta pots. Tiled skews. Half-round plastic rainwater goods. Left half of the principal façade has an advanced eaves course and right has a heavily moulded painted granite eaves cornice Painted and lined cement rendered walls.

At ground floor the shop fills the left bay. Its doorway, is to right and is recessed with a red and black glazed tiled floor. The door is three panelled (top two glazed) with a narrow two paned transom light over. Its right reveal is painted t+g sheeting. Its left cheek is canted and glazed. Filling remainder of shop front is a large fixed window with very thin two-paned transom over. Framing the shop front at either end are thin moulded timber pilasters, with small plain capitals. These support a plain timber fascia which continues right over part of the central bay of adjoining house.

The house fills the central bay at ground floor. It has a modern stained timber and glazed door to left, its opening has a curved rendered reveal with granite threshold. To its right is a 1/1 uPVC window with painted granite cill and stop-end chamfered reveal. Ground floor right bay has a large sheeted timber door leading to rear passage.

Between ground and first floors is a moulded stucco cornice, supported by paired brackets; it forms the cills of the first floor windows.

There are four small regularly spaced 1/1 uPVC windows to first floor. The right two are slightly shorter than the others. All have run moulded architraves with vermiculated ornamental keyblocks. Window openings to second floor are diminished in height and again the right two are shorter than to left. All have moulded cills and run moulded architraves, with those to first floor have additional rusticated keystones.

Left gable is abuts a higher property.

A lower building (No.18 Church Square, HB16/08/010) abuts the right gable.

Rear elevation was inspected from rear yard of HB16/08/010. Walls are unrendered random rubble. Ground floor left is the coachway and remainder was not visible. To first floor left, over coachway there is a single window opening (now infilled). To its right is a sheeted timber door. The right bay is abutted to upper half of first floor and all of second floor by a t+ g sheeted lean-to structure supported on a steel I-beam frame. Its roof is monopitched and slopes from the eaves of main building. To its main face there is a timber casement window. Rest of elevation not inspected.

Rear yard has a two storey random rubble outbuilding with pitched natural slate roof.

Historical information

This plot had been built over by 1776. The date of the present buildings is uncertain, but both are shown on the 1835 Valuation map and cited in the First valuation. The same measurements are given for the buildings shown on the 1860 town map which are cited in the Second valuation book. At that time the north building was a china shop and that to the south a house used as a store. The site does not appear to have been redeveloped, indicating that the present buildings are of early 19thC date, if not earlier.

The original HMBB survey slide shows the building to have had 2 over 2 (horizontally divided) sliding sashes without horns to ground and first floors. The ground floor windows have additional iron railings securing the bottom sashes. The second floor windows are 1/ 2 (horizontally divided) sliding sashes without horns, suggesting they were once Georgian glazed. This building was used as a newspaper office in the 1997-8 film “Crossmaheart”, based on Colin Bateman’s book, “Cycle of Violence”.

The 1970 first survey card states “Mid C19. A three-storey building part shopped on G.F. Walls are finished in lime render, the roof is slated. A continuous cill course at 1st. .F level is supported on paired brackets. The moulded eaves cornice is of heavier section on southern half of the building. D/H windows have sashes divided into two panes with horizontal g.b. Windows are enclosed in square moulded architraves with decorated keystones on 1st F. only. Moulded are pilasters flank the shop window. There is a square vehicle entrance.”

Primary Source:
1. Meade Estate: A Map of the Town of Rathfriland (1776) Now in Norfolk and Norwich Record Office.
2. PRONI 1834 Valuation town map (1:1760), VAL 1D/3/3.
3. PRONI 1835 First Valuation book, VAL 1B/ 358A, p.130; /358B, p.40.
4.OS 1:500 scale town map, Rathfriland (1860), (PRONI OS 8/24/1/4)
5. PRONI c.1862 Second Valuation book, VAL 2B/3/60B, p.15-16.
7. HMBB First Survey Slide (undated).
8. HMBB First Survey Card (20th January 1970)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Although of some age, this attractive building has been compromised by modern uPVC windows and rear extensions.