9 Main Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Mid-terrace two-storey over basement rendered townhouse, built c.1800, located on the west side of Main Street, Hillsborough. Rectangular on plan facing east with railed basement area, stepped front entrance, carriage arch to south and two-storey former coach-house to rear.

Pitched natural slate roof with black clay ridge tiles and replacement tiled chimneystack with octagonal clay pots. Replacement metal guttering on iron brackets to rendered eaves course and metal downpipe. Painted ruled and lined rendered walling. Square-headed window openings with painted masonry sills and original 6/6 timber sash windows with cylinder glass and no horns.

Front elevation is four windows wide to first floor with ground floor openings directly beneath including central entrance and square-headed coach arch to left side. Elliptical-headed door opening containing original tripartite timber doorcase. Original timber door of six raised and fielded panels flanked by sidelights with interlacing tracery, plain timber lintel and original webbed timber fanlight over. Door opens onto concrete platform and five concrete steps bridging the basement enclosed by decorative spear-headed cast-iron railing embedded into concrete plinth.

South elevation abutted by adjoining house No.11 (HB19/05/019).

Carriage arch slopes down to present a three-storey rear elevation with a random arrangement of window openings. 10/10 timber sash window to basement and replacement sheeted timber door. Concrete paved rear yard shared with converted former coach-house.

North elevation abutted by adjoining house No.7 (HB19/05/017).

Setting:
Forming part of a terrace of varying house types lining the west side of Main Street, Hillsborough on a sloping site. Two-storey rubblestone former coach-house to rear, built as one of a pair (HB19/05/019), converted for use as a separate dwelling, with original long landscaped garden extending to the west.

Roof Natural slate
RWG Replacement metal
Walling Ruled and lined render
Windows Original 6/6 timber sash

Historical information

No. 9 Main Street first appears on a map of Hillsborough dating from c.1800 as a single oblong building alongside the adjoining No. 11. The current shared out office at the rear of the house also appears on this early map. On the first Ordnance Survey map of 1833 and the contemporary Valuation map (1830s) No. 9 Main Street is shown as a square building. At that time the house was owned by a Mr. William Wright; the house was valued at £4. 4s. and this included the entire length of the rear out office which was later split between Nos. 9 and 11. Later maps show that Nos. 9 and 11 were divided by a coach lane which led to the shared yard.

In 1861 No. 11 lay vacant, having until recently been occupied by Mark Wardhaugh, an agent of Lord Downshire and resident from that time of Roden House in Park Street (HB19/05/071). The house was valued at £14. 10s. in 1861 when it was owned by a Ms. Mary Kinkaid who also owned No. 11. The valuer recorded the house as a 1B+ dwelling measuring 11 yds by 8 yds and two-storeys tall with a basement level. The house remained vacant until 1874 when it was occupied by a Mr. Robert Hanna, a teacher at the Maze National School (Ulster Towns Directory, 1880). Hanna briefly resided at No. 9 until it and No. 11 were purchased by the Trustees of Hillsborough Presbyterian Church who converted No. 11 into a Manse. Whilst No. 9 Main Street was occupied by the Rev. Terence Boyd, the Rev. Galbraith Johnston occupied No. 9 from 1878 until 1891. The Rev. Johnston (incumbent 1857-88), served in the Crimean War (1853-56) as a chaplain to the forces. From 1891 the church let the house to a John Cleland, a National Schools Teacher; from that time No. 11 became the sole residence of the incumbent minister until the Manse was sold between 1901 and 1911.

The 1901 Census shows that Cleland (54) lived at No. 9 with his wife Sarah, also a teacher, and their young daughter. The census out office return tells us that the out office at the rear of the house was used as a stable and coach house in 1901. Sarah Cleland occupied the house after her husband’s death in 1908 until 1914 when the house fell vacant. In 1916 the house was occupied by a Mrs Steele (the Rev. W Steele had occupied the Manse until 1904). Mrs Steele occupied the house until 1919 when a Mr James Brown came into possession. In 1925 the house was occupied by a Capt. W. H. Simpson who worked in the adjoining Royal Irish Constabulary Barracks in No. 7 Main Street (HB19/05/17). A second constabulary officer Robert B. Lemmon became the last recorded occupant of the house in 1928.

Walker states that No. 9 and 11 Main Street were built towards the end of the 18th century when the town was being greatly expanded; Brett tells us that they were designed as a ‘single seven-bay unit with a shared coach-arch in the centre’ (Brett, Buildings of North Co. Down, p. 220; Walker). In its time the Manse was home to a small number of Presbyterian clergy. The Rev. W. C. Steele was installed as minister in 1891 and during his incumbency erected a new Manse on the Hillsborough-Lisburn Road at a cost of £1,200 (Barry, pp 84-86).

Field research supports a build date of late 18th century; the rear out offices, originally used by Nos. 9 and 11 as coach houses, have since been converted into separate dwellings.

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI D671/M/8/25 – Hillsborough Map c.1800
2. PRONI D671/M/8/57/1 – Hillsborough Illustrated Map 1803
3. PRONI VAL/1/B/344 A-B – Townland Valuations 1834
4. PRONI VAL/1/A/3/14 – Field Map 1834
5. PRONI OS/6/3/14/1 – First Edition OS Map 1834
6. PRONI OS/6/3/14/2 – Second Edition OS Map 1858
7. PRONI OS/6/3/14/3 – Third Edition OS Map 1902-1903
8. PRONI OS/6/3/14/4 – Fourth Edition OS Map 1919-1920
9. PRONI VAL/2/B/3/45A-C – Griffith’s Valuation 1856-64
10. PRONI VAL/12/B/20/14A – Annual Revisions 1864-1879
11. PRONI VAL/12/B/20/14B – Annual Revisions 1880-1889
12. PRONI VAL/12/B/20/14C – Annual Revisions 1890-1908
13. PRONI VAL/12/B/20/14D – Annual Revisions 1909-1928
14. PRONI VAL/12/B/20/14E – Annual Revisions 1928-1930

Secondary Sources

1. Barry, J., ‘Hillsborough: A parish in the Ulster plantation’ (3rd ed.), Belfast, Universities Press., 1982.
2. Brett, C. E. B., ‘Historic buildings, groups of buildings, areas of architectural importance in the towns and villages of Mid Down: Hillsborough, Dromore, Dromara, Ballynahinch, the Spa, Drumaness and Saintfield’ Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, 1974.
3. Brett, C. E. B., ‘Buildings of North County Down’ Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, 2002.
4. Walker, S., ‘Hillsborough: An illustrated history and companion’ Belfast: Cottage Publications, 1994).
5. NIEA File – HB19/05/019.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

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

Criteria for listing: historic interest

R. Age
S. Authenticity
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Mid-terrace two-storey over basement rendered townhouse, built c.1800, located on the west side of Main Street, Hillsborough. With its original style and proportions intact on the front elevation, the carriage arch, stepped platform and railed basement are interesting features on the terrace. Retaining some of its original interior, including staircase and some good joinery it has group value with its neighbour no. 11 Main St., (HB19/05/019), both buildings possibly originally built as a single seven-bay unit with a shared coach-arch. It contributes significantly to the intact Georgian character of Main St., Hillsborough.

General comments

Listing Criteria R & S also apply.