73-75 Bridge Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A three-storey five-bay mid-terrace former linen stores built c.1840; rectangular plan form with large rear return. Located at the north end of Bridge Street on the east side forming part of a terrace opposite the junction with Downshire Road.

Pitched natural slate roof with clay ridge tiles; decorative cast-iron half-circle gutters with box downpipes. Ruled-and-lined painted rendered walling. 1/1 replacement uPVC sliding sash windows (casements to rear); painted masonry cills. Replacement glazed shop front and door.

The principal elevation faces east and is asymmetrically arranged. The ground floor comprises door to right flanked by moulded pilasters; modern replacement glazed shop front extending to the far left with replica timber pilaster. Five uniformly arranged first floor windows with second floor windows directly over.

The left gable is abutted by the adjoining building 77 Bridge Street.

The rear elevation is abutted by a large modern three-storey gable-ended return; three windows wide; of no interest. The left face of the return is abutted by a diminished three-storey pitched roofed historic return; in an advanced state of decay.

The left gable is abutted by the adjoining building (HB17/07/016C).

Setting:

Three storey adjoining terrace to the north and south. The River Bann flows directly adjacent to the rear of the site. The surrounding buildings make up the commercial centre of the town comprising of two and three storey 19th and 20th century buildings.

Roofing: Natural slate
Walling: Render
Windows: uPVC
RWG: Cast-iron

Historical information

Nos 71-75 Bridge Street were either converted from, or replaced, a building used as a Linen and yarn store which formerly stood on the site. Griffiths Valuation records that these former Linen and yarn stores were let by linen manufacturers McConnell, Finlay & Co., and were valued at £65. Finlay also owned the adjoining No. 69 Bridge Street c.1860 (HB17/07/016B; Ulster Street Directories).

Between 1863 and 1870 ownership of this property passed to Samuel Hill of Solitude House (HB17/07/033) who also owned a Flour-mill, kiln and stores a few meters to the south of this building on Bridge Street. From 1864 Samuel Hill let the linen, yarn store and offices (incorporating nos 71-75 Bridge Street) to William Waugh; Waugh, a linen merchant and a Justice of the Peace for Banbridge who resided in ‘The Fort’ in Ballyvalley.

Prior to 1870 nos 71-75 were valued as a single record in the Annual Revisions, however in 1870 the former linen and yard stores were deleted from the valuation sources and individual records were created for nos 71, 73 and 75 Bridge Street. It is not known whether this change resulted from a conversion or a rebuild, however field research and the findings of the First Survey suggest that the terrace was constructed c.1840 making it likely that the former stores were simply converted into private dwellings and commercial premises c.1870.

Between the 1870s-1890s a local trader James Simms formed a small commercial arcade at the bottom of Bridge Street incorporating nos 71-75; photographs from the turn of the 20th century show that a long shop sign ran between the ground and first floor along nos 71-75 Bridge Street (this has since been replaced with individual signs for each building) whilst the surviving fixed lettering ‘Arcade’ sign, situated between the first and second-storey windows of No. 71, also dates from this period (photographs in Quail & Young).

No. 73

No. 73 Bridge Street was originally valued at £38 and was not occupied until 1871 when James Simms took possession; in this year the value of the site was raised from £38 to £40. In 1871 ownership of the property passed to James C. Stuart, a local landowner who owned over 1,200 acres around Banbridge (List of Co. Down Deeds, 1876).

James Simms operated a Druggist and Grocery business from the premises and continued to reside at No. 73 Bridge Street with his family until the end of the Annual Revisions in 1930; there was little change to the property during this period, however the value of the site was raised to £47 when an additional store was raised c.1893. The 1901 Census states that James Simms (51, Presbyterian) resided at No. 73 Bridge Street with his wife Marianna and their six children the oldest of whom, George Herbert, worked as a druggist alongside his father. Simms employed a number of apprentices who also boarded at the site.

In 1911 the census building return described No. 73 Bridge Street as a 1st class dwelling and shop which consisted of 13 rooms and possessed a number of outbuildings including a stable, coach house, turf house, a workshop and a store. Simms continued to be recorded in the valuation sources for a further two decades and by 1930 the value of the site remained at £47. The only discernible change to the site came in 1910 when ownership of the property reverted back to Louisa Hill of Solitude House (widow of Samuel Hill who had died in 1891); Mrs Hill was noted as lessor until the end of the Annual Revisions in 1930.

No. 75

When it was converted along with No. 73 in c.1870, No. 75 Bridge Street was originally valued at £35 although the property was not occupied until 1872 when a Mr. H. W. Smyth came into possession.

Ownership of No. 75 passed to James C. Stuart at the same time he acquired the adjoining No. 73 Bridge Street. James Simms, who had occupied No 73 since 1871, came into possession of No. 75 c.1880 which he then converted into a post office; this resulted in the reduction of the value of the site to £27. Simms continued to operate a post office from this site until the end of the Annual Revisions in 1930 and the only change during this period came in 1910 when (at the same time as No. 73) ownership of No. 75 reverted from James C. Stuart to Louisa Hill of Solitude.

During the First Survey in 1969 nos 73-75 were surveyed under a single record (HB17/07/016D), however after the completion of the survey an additional inspection was carried out which recognised the split in the building; No. 73 was assigned HB17/07/016D whilst No. 75 became HB17/07/016E.

Nos 73 and 75 Bridge Street were individually listed in 1977 and since that time have continued to operate as commercial premises. Field research has found that the ground floor of nos. 73-75 has now been converted into a single shop which currently houses a tanning salon and hence nos 73-75 are now recorded under a single record (HB17/07/016D).

References

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/3/27/1 – First edition Ordnance Survey map 1833
2. PRONI OS/6/3/27/2 – Second Edition Ordnance Survey map 1860
3. PRONI OS/6/3/27/3 – Third Edition Ordnance Survey map 1903-1918
4.PRONI VAL/2/B/3/64/B – Griffith’s Valuation 1863
5. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/6/A – Annual Revisions 1864-1874
6. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/6/B – Annual Revisions 1874-1884
7. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/6/D – Annual Revisions 1885-1894
8. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/7/A – Annual Revisions 1899-1910
9. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/7/B – Annual Revisions 1911-1922
10. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/7/C – Annual Revisions 1921-1930
11. PRONI VAL/12/E/119/4 + 6 – Annual Revisions Banbridge Town Plan
12. List of Co. Down Deeds (1876)
13. Census of Ireland (1901 / 1911)
14. Ulster Street Directories (1843-1918)
15. First Survey Record – HB17/07/016D (1969); HB17/07/016E (No date)

Secondary Sources

1. Quail, D; Young, A. F, ‘Old Banbridge’ Catrine: Stenlake Publishing, 2002.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A three-storey five-bay mid-terrace former linen stores built c.1840. The upper floors of the front elevation have retained there general character and proportion although the ground floor has been altered significantly and the rear return ahs been replaced. There is evidence that some historic fabric and detailing survive. This is a building that has a history of changing use, originally relating to a major industry here, and it forms part of a group of buildings (HB17/07/016A-D) representing the ongoing stages of development at this end of the town.

General comments

This recorded incorporates HB17/07/016E