Enville

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A two-storey with attic five-bay Victorian house built c.1845; rectangular plan form. Located on the Castlewellan Road close to Banbridge town centre.

Pitched natural slate roof with clay ridge tiles; overhanging eaves with patera to the soffits and fascia and paired moulded eaves brackets; ogee moulded cast-iron rainwater goods; replacement roof lights. Stucco rendered walling with rusticated channelling; chimneystacks removed; raised quoins. 6/6 timber sliding sash windows; no horns. Moulded surrounds and projected moulded canopy. Continuous moulded cill course to the first floor windows. Four-panelled timber door with bolection mouldings; central divide and brass ironmongery; set into granite doorcase comprising masonry squared columns with squared-headed over light; set into moulded architraves with decorative scrolled brackets supporting moulded canopy cornice.

The principal elevation faces east and is asymmetrically arranged. The front door is located left of centre, single window to the right and left; single plate glass display window inserted to far right. Five uniform first floor windows.

The left gable is abutted by adjoining building (HB17/07/032)

The rear elevation is asymmetrically arranged. Ruled-and-lined painted render. Two replacement ground floor doors; replacement timber framed casement windows. Round headed fixed landing light with horizontal glazing bars. Three first floor windows.

The right gable is asymmetrically arranged comprising a wedge-shaped single-storey flat-roofed abutment with shop front; detailing generally matching the principal building. Two first floor windows; the left window changed to a glazed door. Two segmental-arched 3/6 timber sliding sash attic windows.

Setting

The building forms part of the street frontage associated with the adjoining warehouse (HB17/07/032). Large yard to the rear accommodating a car park serving commercial units within the enclosure.

Roofing: Natural slate
Walling: Stucco
Window: Timber
RWG: Cast-iron

Historical information

The First Survey record for Enville, a two-storey merchant’s dwelling on the Castlewellan Road, suggests that the building was constructed c.1845, however although this is certainly the period in which the adjoining Mill Court (HB17/07/032) was constructed, there was a building occupying the current site of Enville House from as early as 1833 when it can be seen on the first edition of the Ordnance Survey maps. It is not clear whether this structure was the current dwelling however it is certain that Enville House had been erected by 1860 when the second edition map depicted it adjoining the Mill Court. Griffith’s Valuation (c. 1863) noted that Enville and the adjoining complex (which was described as a linen and yarn store) were owned by William Waugh, a local linen manufacturer and magistrate who was a Justice of the Peace for Banbridge; in 1863 the house and stores were jointly valued at £128.

The Annual Revisions note that William Waugh occupied both the house and the adjoining store until 1872 when the store passed to a Mr. James C. Stuart. Waugh continued to be listed as occupant of the dwelling (which was individually valued at £48 after 1874) until 1881 when a Mr. Joseph Morton took over possession. The Ulster Town’s Directories note that from the mid-19th century Morton was employed as a provision and seed merchant, operating under the names ‘Joseph & Son’ and later ‘J & J Morton’, the local merchant originally operated out of offices on Newry Street between at least 1843 and 1861 before purchasing the lease for the site on the Castlewellan Road. Joseph Morton and his son (also named Joseph) worked together until the father’s death c. 1880 when the Ulster Town Directories described the business simply as ‘Joseph Morton, provision and seed merchant’ (Ulster Town Directories).

In 1881 Morton also took possession of the adjoining former linen and yarn store and converted it into a warehouse for his provisions business; prior to taking possession the store had been individually valued at £90 and noted as a ‘reeling, winding, warping and yarn stores,’ however upon coming into possession of the site the building was described as ‘grass and seed stores’ and reduced in value to £60 (the changes occurred by 1886, in that year the valuer noted that the reduction in value was due to the store being ‘very little used’). Joseph Morton Jnr. Continued to occupy Enville House until early-1930s; however he let out the adjoining stores to A. Cross & Sons in 1899 (A. Cross & Sons do not appear in the Ulster Town Directories between 1901 and 1918, however the site continued to be described as a ‘grass and seed store’ in the Annual Revisions suggesting a business connection between the Cross and Morton families).

The census records that Joseph Morton Jnr., (58, Presbyterian) resided at Enville House with his wife Grace (47) and their ten children; the census building return described Enville as a 1st class dwelling consisting of nine rooms and possessing a stable, two cow houses and a store amongst its rear out offices; by the 1911 census there was little change to the site, however the only out office noted in that year was a single stable. In 1922 A. Cross & Sons vacated the adjoining factory at which time it was reoccupied by Morton.

Joseph Morton resided at Enville with his family until his death in 1931; by his widows death in 1934 the family had vacated the house on the Castlewellan road and lived at Moorlands (HB17/07/038), however Joseph’s son Reginald continued to reside at Enville in 1935 (Linn, p. 225). Enville House and the adjoining warehouse were purchased by the Northern Ireland Electricity Board in the 1950s was utilised as an electricity showroom until at least the First Survey Record in 1969. In that year Brett described Enville as ‘c. 1845: an uncommonly finely built stucco large house, with horizontal rustication, fine bracketed granite doorcase, heavy straight dripstones above window architraves and very delicately-detailed eaves with medallions and paterae.’ Brett noted that in converting Enville into a commercial showroom, two ground-floor windows were substituted with a single large plate glass replacement; however, ‘its introduction [was] effected with skill and sensitivity ... The moulding and sill skilfully carried through’ maintaining the original character of Enville’s facade (Brett, p. 10). The single-storey flat-roof shop extension adjoining Enville’s north gable was likely constructed at the same time the former dwelling was converted into an electricity showroom.

Enville House was listed in 1977 and since that time has continued to be utilised for commercial purposes, currently housing a dry cleaners on the ground-floor, whilst the upper floors have been converted into modern offices.

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/C – Griffith’s Valuation c. 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/16/8/A – Annual Revisions 1884-1888
9. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/7/A – Annual Revisions 1899-1910
10. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/7/B – Annual Revisions 1911-1922
11. PRONI VAL/12/B/16/7/C – Annual Revisions 1921-1930
12. Ulster Town Directories (1843-1918)
13. PRONI Wills Catalogue (1 Jul 1931; 2 Oct 1934)
14. Census of Ireland (1901/1911)
15. First Survey Record – HB17/07/031 (1969)
16. Ordnance Survey map – 220-8 (1969)

Secondary Sources

1. Brett, C. E. B., ‘List of historic buildings, groups of buildings, areas of architectural importance in the Borough of Banbridge’ Belfast: Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, 1969.
2. Linn, R., ‘A history of Banbridge’ Banbridge: The Banbridge Chronicle Press, 1935.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Z. Rarity
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A two-storey with attic five-bay Victorian house built c.1845. Originally part of the adjoining warehouse, the building has retained much of its character and appearance, although some unsympathetic alterations compromise its integrity. The interior layout and detailing has largely survived with exception of minor loss of historic fabric. This is a fine example of a merchant's dwelling with much good detailing surviving. With the survival of the associated warehouse (HB17/07/031B) the complex of buildings are of group value with significant interest in the context of the commercial development of Banbridge and as a relatively rare example of a yarn/linen warehouse surviving virtually intact with the main house in its original context.

General comments

To be reumbered as HB17/07/031A previously HB17/07/031