36-42 Main Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Originally uniform group of four, relatively plain single fronted two storey dwellings of c.1865, most now with modern returns to rear and modern window frames throughout. The group is set on the NW side of Main Street, Greyabbey.

The front SE facade of each house has the same arrangement of a door to the left, with plain pilasters, lintel frieze and cornice, a window to the right, and two similar sized windows to the first floor.

The main gabled roofs are covered with thick concrete tiles, with similar tiles to extensions. Five yellow brick chimneys to whole terrace. Cast iron rw goods to front facade of terrace, PVC to rear. Nos.36-38 are finished in plain render, with lined render to Nos.40-42. Nos.36 and 42 (the end buildings) have chamfered quoins and there is a chamfered plinth to the whole terrace. The front elevation of the whole terrace is painted a uniform black and white.

No.36 has a timber and glazed door and PVC windows, made to look like sash and case with ‘Georgian’ panes. No.38 has a similar door and PVC windows, but windows are modern in style with diamond ‘leaded’ lattice pattern throughout. No.40 has similar door and windows to No.38, but without lattice to windows. No.42 has a timber sheeted ‘stable’ door, but the ground floor window opening has been greatly enlarged and now has a timber multi pane window, with ‘gothic’ arch heads to uppermost panes and diamond leaded lattice pattern throughout.

Exposed section of Gable to No.36 rendered and blank. Gable of No.42 has been extended with lean to two level extension to rear and is rendered. This gable has one modern timber window (with coloured glass) to the right on the ground floor and two smaller modern timber windows to the right on the first floor. Nos.38-40 have two storey gabled extensions to the rear with PVC windows.

No.36 has a two storey lean to extension to the rear with modern windows, and there is a modern timber window to the rear of the (partly rubble built) extension to No.42. All extensions are rendered, with that to No.42 only partly so.

Historical information

According to the owner of No.38 (who also discovered a piece of plaster in his property with a date etched into it) these houses were constructed in 1865. The terrace thus appears to have been built upon an earlier grouping (of probably single storey dwellings) shown on the 1834 and c.1860 OS maps.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI OS/6/3/11/1 OS maps, Down 11, 1834
2 'Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland Vol.7: Parishes of County Down II', ed. Angelique Day and Patrick McWilliams (QUB 1991), pp.67-72 [1834]
3 PRONI VAL/1B/33 1st valuation, Greyabbey, c.1834-38
4 PRONI VAL/1D/3/17 Valuation plan, Greyabbey, c.1838
5 PRONI VAL/2B/3/4 Second valuation, Greyabbey, c.1859
6 PRONI VAL/2D/3/10 Second valuation plan, Greyabbey, 1859
7 PRONI VAL/2B/3/4 Second valuation, Greyabbey, c.1859
8 PRONI VAL/2D/3/ Second valuation plan, Greyabbey, 1859
9 PRONI OS/6/3/11/2 OS maps, Down 11, 1860
10 PRONI VAL/12B/23/16a-f Annual valuation revision books, Greyabbey, 1866-1930
11 PRONI VAL/12E/99/1 Valuation plan, Greyabbey, 1906-35
12 UFTM W.A. Green Collection WAG 3038 Photograph of Main Street Greyabbey looking south west

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Originally uniform group of four, relatively plain single fronted two storey dwellings of c.1865, most now largely with modern returns to rear and modern window frames throughout.