13 The Square

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Two storey end of terrace house of c.1800 set in a small cul de sac at the SW corner of The Square.

The central door opening has a semi circular arched Gibbsian surround with moulded archivolt and keystone. The fanlight is plain and the modern timber door is half glazed. To the left is an enlarged window opening with three pane PVC window, with two shallow high level openers and one large fixed window. To the right of the door is a further window with matching PVC frame but with one high level opener. To the first floor are three equally spaced windows with single high level opener as before. The first floor windows are slightly shorter than those on ground floor. The façade is rendered and painted with the corners with moulded and bevelled in/out quoins.

To the right gable is a single storey lean to with two external doors; this appears to be used as garden shed. The upper portion of the gable which is finished in roughcast, is blank except for a small right of centre square window at second floor.

To the rear is a centrally positioned two storey gabled return finished in rough cast. It is considerably lower than the main house. The apex of its roof meets the main rear wall just below gutter level. To the left of the return (on the main rear wall) there are windows as before, one to ground floor and one to first floor. The right of the return the main wall is not visible. The E face of the return has one enlarged left of centre window opening to ground floor and two evenly spaced windows to first floor. That to ground floor has two high level openers and those to first floor have a single opener each. The ground floor of the gable of the return rear is obscured with a large flat roofed single storey extension. Above this is a left of centre fixed PVC window. The flat roofed extension extends across the full width of the return and the former side yard.

The E face of the flat roofed return has a two pane door to the left and a wide three pane window with two high level openers to the right.

The main and return roofs are finished in Bangor Blue slates. To the rear of the main roof are three Velux windows. The main roof has two brick chimney stacks, with a tall stack in concrete brick to the return.

To the SW corner of the rear yard is a two storey L shaped block. The former outhouses were recently converted by the present owner for use as a drum studio and as garages. Low rendered garden wall to front of house.

The owner confirmed that the building is constructed mainly of greywacke field stone. He also confirmed that the joists were pegged and that the roofspace had chaff laid as insulation between the joists .

Historical information

This site is shown occupied on the 1722 map of Comber and all other available maps thereafter. According to the current owner the present property was built as a farm house in c.1800, a theory which is supported by the 1834 valuation returns which record a dwelling with dimensions matching that we see today. At this stage, however, the property does not appear to have been a farmer’s residence, as it was in the hands of one Alexander Montgomery, who was actually an attorney who (among other legal work) held the Manor Court in the large inn to the east side of this house (now the Northern Bank). Montgomery appears to have remained in possession of the house until 1856, but by 1861 it had been acquired by John Miller, the co-owner of the near by distillery who lived in the large house just to the north of this (now called ‘Aureen’ 9-11 The Square). Miller appears to have utilised the property as accommodation for the one of the managers of the distillery itself.

In the early 20th century the property housed a haberdashery shop. It was probably during this time that the ground floor front window to the east side was enlarged. After this the building was home to Hugh Murphy who used the outbuildings for the storage of dairy produce. Mr. Murphy also kept a lorry at the rear and delivered dairy produce throughout the Comber area.

References- Primary sources
1 PRONI D.654/M1B/2 Londonderry Papers- ‘Survey of the town, tenements and parks of Comber…1722’.
2 PRONI D.654/M54/1 Londonderry Papers- ‘A rough plan of the undermentioned tenements in the town of Comber, April 1786’ by David Geddas. [Pictorial lease map of the north side of The Square.]
3 PRONI D.654/M1B/18 Londonderry Papers- ‘A survey of the tenements out of lease in the town of Comber survey’d A.D. 1801’ by David Geddas
4 Linen Hall Library ‘Pigot & Co.’s Dublin and Hibernian Provincial Directory’ (Manchester 1824).
5 PRONI VAL 1B/316A p.59 1st valuation, Comber, 1834.
6 PRONI OS/1/3/10 OS map, 1st ed. 1834, Down 10.
7 ‘Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland Vol.7: Parishes of County Down II’, ed. Angelique Day and Patrick McWilliams (QUB1991), p.32.
8 Linen Hall Library ‘Slater’s National Commercial Directory of Ireland’ (Manchester 1846), p.442.
9 Linen Hall Library ‘Slater’s Royal National Commercial Directory of Ireland’ (Manchester 1856), p.505.
10 PRONI OS/6/3/10/3 OS map, 1st rev. 1858, Down 10.
11 PRONI 2nd valuation, Comber, 1861. [In print in PRONI search room and in the Linen Hall Library.]
12 Linen Hall Library ‘Slater’s Royal National Commercial Directory of Ireland’ (Manchester 1870).
13 George Henry Bassett ‘County Down Guide and Directory’ (Dublin 1886), pp.303-305.
14 MBR Photographs of The Square, Comber, c.1900-1950. [These photographs appear to be mainly copies of those belonging to the Laurence Collection (with original negatives held at the NLI in Dublin)].
15 PRONI OS/2/3/10 OS map, 2nd ed. 1901, Down 10.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Substantial two storey house of c.1800 with ‘Gibbsian’ doorway. A ground floor window to the front has been slightly enlarged and all window openings now have PVC frames. A flat roofed extension has been added to the rear return.