8-9 The Strand

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Site, in the terrace fronting The Strand, of two former two storey terraced houses, of possible pre 1834 origin, demolished 1991-92 with part of the ‘Portaferry Hotel’ now occupying this site.

The buildings were described in the original survey of November 1970 as, 'Two storey block of two houses. Roof slated. Chimneys rendered. Wall rendered and painted in v-jointed blocks. Five first floor drop hung windows, horizontal astragals. Ground floor from left hand has through passage door, flush panelled. Two drop hung windows as above. Two sheeted entrance doors with common mullion and plain fanlights, centred on central upper window. Then two drop hung windows as before. Condition fair to poor. Frontage about 36ft'.

Historical information

On Patrick O’Hare’s 1799 map a large building is shown on the corner of The Strand and Castle Street. At this stage the remainder of the property on the south or Strand side incorporated the site now covered by the present hotel as well as land to the rear and buildings where the ‘The Cornstore’ restaurant now stands.

During the early nineteenth century, however, the lease was sub divided, with the buildings to the rear becoming Maxwell’s Distillery (later a corn mill and by 1860s, falling into dereliction) and a tan yard, run by William Warnock. The rest of the section to the 'corner' formed one large property, with a separate house next to it further along the Strand. In 1835 the larger property to the corner was in possession of a Hugh Boden and included a two storey dwelling house with extensive single storey outbuildings (which, from the valuation plan, appears to have been situated right on the corner). The dwelling further along The Strand (also two storey) was the home of one Eliza Lyttle. This latter dwelling appears to have been the former No.9 The Strand, with the former No.8 also present at this stage and in the hands of an Edward Lowry. The valuers regarded both dwellings as 'old' (they were graded 'C'), suggesting that both were probably of 18th century construction.

In 1860 one Edward Bryce obtained a lease of both houses, renting them out to tenants. In 1861 the residents are recorded as a John Wylie (in No.9) and Margaret Boyle (No.8).

In 1991 both houses (which had been acquired by the owners of the neighbouring Portaferry Hotel) were demolished and the Portaferry Hotel extended on to the site.

References- Primary sources
1 Walter Harris, 'The Ancient and Present State of the County of Down' (Dublin 1744), p. 44. [ Harris describes Portaferry as ‘a market town, but irregularly built, and few other than thatched houses in it’.]
2 'Taylor's and Skinner's Maps of the roads of Ireland' (Dublin 1777)
3 PRONI D.552/B/3/3/1 Savage/Nugent Papers: ‘A Plan or Map of the Town of Portaferry’ by Patrick O’Hare, 1799 [The
Savage/Nugent Papers contain many documents relating to Portaferry and the surrounding area]
4 Linen Hall Library ‘Pigot & Co.’s Dublin and Hibernian Provincial Directory’ (Manchester 1824)
5 'Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland Vol.7: Parishes of County Down II', ed. Angelique Day and Patrick McWilliams (QUB 1991) [The memoirs provide a description of John Maxwell’s Distillery, originally sited at the rear of the present hotel.]
6 PRONI OS/6/3/32/1 OS maps, 1st ed., 1834, Down sheet 32
7 PRONI VAL/1B/37 1st valuation, Ballyphilip, c.1835-38
8 PRONI VAL/1D/3/4 Valuation town plan of Portaferry, c.1838
9 Linen Hall Library ‘Slater’s National Commercial Directory of Ireland’ (Manchester 1846), p.520-23
10 PRONI and Linen Hall Library ‘Belfast and Province of Ulster Directory’ Vols.1-21, 1852-1900, (Belfast, Henderson [1852-65], Belfast News-Letter [1865- ])
11 Linen Hall Library ‘Slater’s Royal National Commercial Directory of Ireland’ (Manchester 1856), p.592-95
12 PRONI OS/8/23/1- OS town plan of Portaferry, 1859
13 PRONI Second ('Griffith's') valuation, 1863 [In print.]
14 PRONI VAL/12E/112/1- Valuation maps of Portaferry, c.1863, with revisions of 1902
15 Linen Hall Library ‘Slater’s Royal National Commercial Directory of Ireland’ (Manchester 1870), pp.341-43
16 PRONI OS/8/23/2 OS town plan of Portaferry, 1874
17 George Henry Bassett ‘County Down Guide and Directory’ (Dublin 1886)
18 PRONI OS/8/23/3 OS town plan of Portaferry, 1900
19 UFTM WAG 609, 611, 612 W.A. Green Collection, photographs of Portaferry Quay, harbour, Shore Road etc.
20 PRONI VAL/12E/112/2- Valuation maps of Portaferry, 1902, with revisions of 1935

Secondary sources
1 G. Philip Bell, C.E.B. Brett, Sir Robert Matthew, 'Ulster Architectural Heritage Survey: Portaferry & Strangford'
(Belfast UAHS 1969)

2 J.H. Buller, ‘Banking in Portaferry’ in Journal of the Upper Ards Historical Society, No. 7 (1983), p. 6
3 Dick Oram, "The Buildings of Portaferry" in 'Journal of the Upper Ards Historical Society No.16' (1992), p. 24
4 Dick Oram, ‘A short history of the Portaferry Hotel’ in Journal of the Upper Ards Historical Society, No. 17 (1993), pp. 20-24.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Site of two former two storey terrace houses, of possible 18th century construction, demolished 1991. The site is now occupied by part of the Portaferry Hotel.