Historic Buildings Record · Northern Ireland
Site of former 34 Bridge Street
Town Parks, Ards and North Down, Northern Ireland
The record
- Designation
- Record only (not listed)
- Grade
- Record Only
- Type
- Demolished
- Date of construction
- 1820 - 1839
- Address
- Site of former 34 Bridge Street, Comber, Co. Down, BT23 5AT
- Townland
- Town Parks
- Council
- Ards and North Down
- Country
- Northern Ireland
- Coordinates
- 54.55116, -5.74314
- Date of survey
- 06 July 1999
- HB reference
- HB24/15/017
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.
David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries
Shown on 5 historical map sheets, the earliest the 1794 "Sheet 55. (Cary's England, Wales, and Scotland)." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
The Department's description
Exterior description and setting
Site, in the middle of the terrace on the N side of Bridge Street, of a former two storey house, demolished c.1988 with a much larger modern building now occupying the site. The house was described in the first survey of November 1970 as: ‘Two storey house. Roof slated. Chimneys rendered, walls rough cast. Four first floor drop hung windows, Georgian panes, shouldered cement surround. Ground floor has two light drop hung window- no astragals. Central doorway [then] drop hung doorway as first floor. Doorway has stone pilasters and archivolt with keystone [en]casing semicircular arch decorated fanlight over panelled door. Frontage about 30ft’.
Historical information
There appears to be a building shown on this site on the 1722 map of Comber. None of the houses listed in the valuation records of 1833 for this end of Bridge Street match the dimensions of the recently demolished house, however they do indicate that there was rebuilding going on in the street at that date. Given the fact that the terrace to either side of this house was built of sandstone, a material which started to be used a large scale in the Comber area from the 1830s onwards, it is probable that the former house on this site may have been built in the years immediately following 1834. The fact that it had a late Georgian door surround suggests this also.
The house (and its neighbour to the east) were demolished c.1988, with a much larger modern sheltered housing complex taking in the site and much ground to the west and north.
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/M54/3, 11, 27, 33, 37 Londonderry Papers- Maps of Bridge Street 1793-1833.
3 PRONI VAL 1B/316A p.61 1st valuation, Comber, 1834.
4 PRONI OS/1/3/10 OS map, 1st ed. 1834, Down 10.
5 PRONI OS/6/3/10/3 OS map, 1st rev. 1858, Down 10.
6 PRONI 2nd valuation, Comber, 1861. [In print in PRONI search room and in the Linen Hall Library- the town plan to accompany this valuation is missing.]
7 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
Site of former two storey terrace house of c.1835-40, demolished c.1988 with its position now taken up with part of a much large modern sheltered dwelling complex.
Nearby in the register
- Site of former 36 Bridge StreetDemolishedunder 1 mi
- Site of former Comber Methodist ChurchDemolishedunder 1 mi
- Site of former 43 Bridge StreetDemolishedunder 1 mi
- 38-42 Bridge StreetPublic Houseunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.