28 High Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Two storey urban vernacular house of pre 1834 origin, situated at the NE end of a terrace on the SE side of High Street. The building is set on a slope rising NE to SW. Originally this dwelling was part of a larger house which encompassed all of the property to the SW side (now No.28).

The front (NW) façade has a doorway to the right on the ground floor with timber panelled and glazed door with four pane fanlight. The door is encased with a painted stone surround with keystone. To the left of the doorway is a sash window, with glazing bars to top sash (6 panes over 1). To the first floor are two windows, as ground floor.

To the left at the rear is small, single storey, gabled return (‘shared’ with No.30). The NE face of this return has a partly glazed rear door to the right and a double sash window (with frames as front), to the left. The SE (gabled) face of the return is blank. The rear façade of the main building has a window as front to the right on the ground floor, with another, directly above, to the first floor. To the left of this is a similar (but narrower) window at a higher [?attic landing] level. Below this is a squat, six pane window. The exposed section of the NE gable has an attic window, as front, but much smaller.

The front façade is finished in a slightly rough, plain render, the NE gable in plain render, and the rear and return in rough cast. The entire façade is painted. The gabled roof is covered in natural slate, as is the return roof. Velux window to rear. Rendered chimney stack to the centre and NE end of roof ridge. Aluminium rw goods.

Historical information

This site is shown occupied on the 1722 map of Comber. The present house appears to have originally formed part of a larger single dwelling with the present No.30, a dwelling which is probably that (of the same dimensions) noted in the valuation of 1834 as the home of one Hugh Harper. The valuers noted that the property (and the rest of this terrace) was of reasonable age at this stage, and may have dated from the 1790s or perhaps slightly later.

It is difficult to say when the original house was divided in two (the lack of map for the 2nd valuation of 1861 means we cannot tell if the change had been effected by this date).

The whole terrace on this side is believed to have once housed workers of the near by brewery (later the Upper Distillery)- it may even have been purpose built. If this is indeed the case, then the large dwelling of which this particular property formed a part (which was much larger than the rest of those in the terrace), may have been a foreman’s residence.

In 1920 the terrace was acquired by Andrews flax spinning mill (for use as employee housing) and in 1980 was vested in the Housing Executive. In 1984 the properties were acquired by Hearth Housing Association and renovated and restored two years later.

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/M54/2, 8, 9, 14, Londonderry Papers- Maps of Cow Lane 1793-1810. [High Street was known as Cow Lane in the 18th and early 19th centuries.]
3 PRONI VAL 1B/316A p.65 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 making identification of owners of properties largely impossible.]
7 PRONI OS/2/3/10 OS map, 2nd ed. 1901, Down 10.

Secondary sources
1 Hearth Housing Association- notes concerning the history of 28-50 High Street.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
H-. Alterations detracting from building
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Two storey early vernacular terrace house, originally part of a much larger pre 1834 single dwelling which included its neighbour to the south west (No.30). The property, and the rest of this terrace, was sympathetically renovated in 1986.