88 Lisburn Road

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

Mid terrace house, three storey with attic over basement located on the southern side of the Lisburn Road at the junction with Elmwood Avenue. Mid Victorian, built circa 1860, it has group value with No.86 Lisburn Road (HB26/28/043/A and HB26/28/043/C. Located on the periphery of Queens Conservation Area and is close to HB26/28/044 – All Souls Church (grade B+), located to the rear.

Natural slate roof with black clay ridge tiles and centrally positioned barrel-vaulted roofed dormer to front, located to left of chimney stack centred on ridgeline. Projecting timber eaves with metal guttering set above projecting string course of light grey brick with continuous band of pointed dentils, below which is positioned a decorative, raised, four course mercantile band of light grey brickwork in diaper pattern. Cast iron down pipe to right hand side extends full height of building. Exterior finish red brick walling in Flemish bond with chamfered brick edgings around all apertures and having shallow segmented arches above with soldier course profile and painted stone cills. Windows painted timber framed single glazed sliding sash with horns with 1/1 panes – top floor windows with two over one. Projecting chamfered string course divides the upper floors from entrance level. Vertically aligned with outer edge of windows above, ground floor windows consist of pair of one over one painted timber framed single glazed sliding sash windows with horns. Recessed entrance doorway (Painted, double doors a recent intervention) to left coupled with entrance to no 86 (HB26/28/043/A) mirrored on circular stone column with square plinth and shaft adorned with floriated capital. Communal stone step approach, with railing guard, adorned with gold painted fleur-de-lis topped vertical rails and feature circular rings on mid-point to brick faced basement lightwell below with two six over three painted single glazed sliding sash windows with painted stone cills.

Rear elevation with roof as described above with cat slide roof over small, full height rear return, built at half landing level and with modern rooflight intervention on bottom right-hand side of main roof, adjacent to rear rendered chimney stack. Exterior finish red brick walling in Common bond. Fenestration to main block consists of six over six painted timber, sliding sash windows with shallow flush brick arches above and diminish in height from ground to second level with the ground floor vertical metal grilles fixed externally. Basement level having white painted rendered walls with single six over six painted single glazed sliding sash windows with external mounted grille bars. Rear extension as above with top floor having three over three painted timber sliding sash window.

SETTING
Number 88 is centrally located in the terrace and has group value with HB26/28/043/A & HB26/28/043/C and aligned parallel to Lisburn Road forming the approach to the Queen's Conservation Area. Together with the original railings, defining the lightwells, the
setting is enhanced with the rare survival of original brick boundary walls to Lisburn Road, complete with copings and entrance gate. It is a rare surviving example of a three storey over basement construction – albeit of an unfinished terrace block. As part of the collective building group, it helps to maintain a visual coherence of the streetscape and forms an important surviving remnant of a coherent ensemble on the Lisburn Road.

MATERIALS
Roof; Natural slate
Walls: Brickwork
Windows: Single glazed, painted, timber, sliding sash.
RWG: Cast iron

Historical information

Originally built as ‘Elmwood Terrace’, the terrace of three dwelling houses for the mercantile classes was constructed c1865. The architect is unknown. Although nearby terraces of an earlier date, ‘Royal Terrace’ (1848) and ‘Queen’s Elms’ (1859) (both now gone) were designed by Thomas Jackson (Dublin Builder, Dixon), there are no definitive stylistic indications or other surviving evidence that this terrace is also a Jackson design. Articles published in the Builder and Irish Builder that have been cited as supporting evidence for Jackson as the architect of the terrace, in fact relate to Queen’s Elms (www.dia.ie).

The terrace was constructed on the edge of the grounds of ‘Elmwood’, a mansion owned by Edward Harris Clarke, a Director of the Belfast Bank. The dwellings are shown on the large-scale map of 1873 as a terrace of three, each with a return and small yard. Two of the houses face onto the Lisburn Road and the third faces onto what is now Elmwood Avenue.

The lands surrounding the mansion of ‘Elmwood’ were gradually developed from the mid-19th century, the first edition OS map of 1832-3 showing a small house within landscaped grounds, planted with trees and with a curving driveway opening at one end onto University Road and at the other onto the Lisburn Road. According to Carleton, this early house dated from c1790 and it was Edward Harris Clarke who rebuilt this dwelling in 1856-8, his classical mansion, named ‘Elmwood’ surviving until the mid-20th century. E H Clarke was a barrister and a JP for county Antrim who had trained at Trinity College Dublin and was called to the bar in 1834. Clarke retired from the bar in 1841, and initially became an industrialist, entering into partnership with Narcissus Batt of Purdysburn and his nephew Samuel Batt in chemical works in Ballymacarett. In 1851 Clarke moved into banking and became a co-director, with his fellow barrister, Arthur Sharman Crawford, of the Belfast Banking Company, retiring in 1880 due to failing eyesight.

The Belfast Bank suffered a partial ‘run’ in the closing months of 1857, following a ‘terrible crash’ in Scottish banking and subsequent to these events (although it is unclear if there is a connection), E H Clarke leased a portion of his land facing University Road to Thomas Gaffikin, linen merchant. Gaffikin built a terrace of seven dwellings, known as Queen’s Elms (completed in 1859), cutting off the direct access from ‘Elmwood’ to University Road. There is a hint at reluctance surrounding the deal, in the stipulation made by Clarke that the ‘row of fine old elms shall be allowed to remain’ (Dublin Builder) and indeed there was a row of trees in front of the terrace in the 1960s when Queen’s Elms was demolished.

Elmwood Terrace was the second terrace to be built within the grounds of ‘Elmwood’. Valuation records indicate that the terrace was built on land leased from Edward H Clarke, and the terrace was most likely built by Clarke himself but was then acquired by James Jenkins. Jenkins, the proprietor of a ‘loan office’ or pawnbrokers in Mill Street and Marquis Street until his retirement c1870, and the owner of several houses in Belfast, is noted as the ‘immediate lessor’ of Elmwood Terrace in valuation records at an early stage. Following his retirement from pawnbroking, Jenkins became a member of Belfast Corporation, (chairman of the Sanitary Committee), a Water Commissioner, JP and a Poor Law Guardian. James Jenkins’ son William Alexander Jenkins went on to live in the end terrace (7 Elmwood Avenue) for over 40 years. Early records are undated, but Carleton gives a date of 1865 for the completion of the terrace and the first mention of Elmwood Terrace in the newspapers is in 1866, which is consistent with Carleton’s date.

The terrace is unfinished as can be seen from the ‘hanging’ fireplaces to the NE elevation of Number 86. It is possible that the original intention was to build across the width of the Elmwood estate to form a terrace similar in width to Queen’s Elms. Nineteenth century maps show that building across the full width of the plot would have entailed blocking the access driveway from the Lisburn Road leading to the rear stableyard of ‘Elmwood’. The driveway featured a gate lodge, surrounded by trees, and Clarke may have decided to retain the rear access driveway and lodge, having lost the driveway to the front of the house when Queen’s Elms was built in 1859. The gate lodge was demolished and the driveway and most of the trees removed between 1884 and 1902, and it was perhaps not until Clarke’s death in 1889 that these changes were made, long after the impetus to complete Elmwood Terrace had faded. However, the reasons for not completing the terrace are not made explicit in any available records.

Numbers 86-88 were initially valued at £43 and number 7 at £56. The valuations were reduced to £40, £40 and £50 in 1881, then raised again and lowered to £45 and £50 following an appeal. Two houses are listed as Elmwood Terrace in the 1865 street directory, one vacant and one occupied by Colonel Campbell, suggesting that the row was only partially complete at this time. As befitted a building on a main thoroughfare the newly-built terrace was decorated with flags for the visit of Prince Arthur, third son of Queen Victoria in 1869, as reported in the Northern Whig of the 3rd May.

The first long-term resident listed at number 88 was Richard Bell (Street Directories), a Quaker and formerly a partner in Messrs Thomas Bell & Co of Bellevue, Lurgan, a company that produced cambric handkerchiefs by handloom. Bell had been manager of the ‘foreign department’ of the business, particularly their American trade. He had moved to Belfast with his wife Margaret and their sons Richard Bell (Jr), a stockbroker and Andrew Lockhart Bell c1870. Following the deaths of Richard Bell, his son Richard Bell (Jr) and his wife over a period of years, the house was vacated by 1898, when it was advertised to let. The advertisement noted that the house was ‘newly papered and painted’ and that it overlooked the grounds of the Deaf and Dumb Institution, a Lanyon -designed building constructed in 1845 (demolished 1963). The accommodation comprised a dining room, drawing room, six bedrooms, a cloakroom, lavatory, two pantries, and a bathroom.

The next long-term residents (1909-1928) were the Lefèvre family, who were living in the house at the time of the 1911 census. Mary Lefèvre, 51, lived with her two sisters and her brother, Charles, who was a linen yarn agent. The three sisters were all dressmakers, and they employed a general domestic servant. Despite their French name, the four had all been born in Belfast City, but had previously been living in and around Newry, where their father Jean Baptiste Gustave Lefèvre and his wife, Lucy also lived (Gustave and Charles are known to have lived together at Rosemount in Millvale). Gustave Lefèvre was working for the Bessbrook Spinning Mills in 1890, along with Charles, and was a ‘traveller and foreign correspondent’ (PRONI Wills), indicating that he was a travelling salesman, perhaps to French-speaking markets. Charles Lefèvre represented Bessbrook at cricket and rugby in the 1880s and 90s. Both of the parents had died shortly before the siblings came to Belfast. Charles Lefèvre was a Captain in the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers during WW1 and after the war he was active in the welfare of ex-Servicemen having a seat on the War Pensions Committee and philanthropic organisations helping ex-soldiers. He was also well-known in rugby circles, as ‘one of the best-known referees in Ireland’, appointed several times to referee international matches.

The Lefèvre family had vacated the house by 1928 and the house was again advertised to let, the advert specifying that the house would ‘suit doctor or dentist’. The next long-term tenant (1934-1957) was T G Bennett, painter, who was resident at the time of the 1934 revaluation. At that time, the house is recorded as having four receptions, four bedrooms, two attics, a kitchen, scullery, pantry, three WCs and a bathroom. The valuer comments that the dwelling was a ‘very old large house, repair fairly good for age’ but ‘difficult property to let’. The valuer’s notes indicate a 3½ storey main block with basement and a small four-storey with basement return, with an attached single storey outbuilding/coal house (now gone).

As the character of the Lisburn Road began to change, the former dwelling house was converted for use as offices, by the late 1950s. The first commercial occupants were the Northern Counties Life Assurance Co, but by 1970 the former dwelling was the area offices of several meat processing firms including Denny & Co and subsequently, in the mid-1970s the occupants were Crampton (NI) Ltd, a building firm.
A photograph of 1985 shows that the front door was originally recessed (occupying the position of the inner door today) and the outer door and fanlight are additions that have been made in recent years. An extra step has also been inserted at the top of the flight of steps leading to the front door.

The boundary wall to the terrace has been partially removed to the Elmwood Avenue side but otherwise remains in its original position, with openings as depicted on the 1873 large-scale map. A traditional tiled Belfast street sign for Elmwood Avenue (likely dating to c1910) is mounted on the boundary wall. A row of trees is shown on the 1884 map in front of the terrace and trees are maintained in a similar position within the property boundary today.

This mid-Victorian terrace, home to the mercantile classes for decades, and latterly converted to commercial premises as the demographic of the Lisburn Road has changed, has survived in an area where several terraces of a similar age have not (e.g. Queen’s Elms, Royal Terrace, Cranbrook Terrace, Wilmont Terrace (north)). The terrace is of a style characteristic of its date, the decorative details in the cornices, doorways, and ironwork and the segmental window heads and barrel-roofed dormers distinguishing it from the terraces of an earlier era, while the overall composition is nonetheless restrained when compared to later Victorian designs.

The fact that the terrace was never completed speaks to the history of the ‘Elmwood’ estate on which it was built and perhaps also to the vicissitudes of Victorian banking in Belfast. Although the terrace has lost some original features, (notably front doors and some internal features) the windows, ironwork and much internal detailing have survived. The state of preservation of the terrace is overall unusually good, particularly when compared to other non-listed terraces in this part of the Lisburn Road. The building contributes significantly to the local streetscape, standing out among the surviving Victorian terraces which characterise this part of South Belfast.

References:
Primary Sources:
1. PRONI OS/6/1/61/1 – First Edition Ordnance Survey Map (1832-3)
2. PRONI OS/6/1/61/2 – Second Edition Ordnance Survey Map (1858)
3. PRONI OS/6/1/61/3 – Third Edition Ordnance Survey Map (1901-2)
4. PRONI OS/6/1/61/4 – Fourth Edition Ordnance Survey Map (1938)
5. Large-scale OS maps, 1858, 1873, 1884, 1902/3 (https://shop.centremapslive.co.uk)
6. The Builder, 11th September 1858, p.615
7. Dublin Builder, 1st May 1859, p.55
8. The Builder, 4th June 1859, p.374
9. Dublin Builder, 1st October 1859, p.129
10. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/D/7 – Annual Revisions (1862-1882)
11. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/D/14 – Annual Revisions (1882-1896)
12. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/A/36 – Annual Revisions (1897-1905)
13. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/P/3– Annual Revisions (1906-1915)
14. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/P/6– Annual Revisions (1916-1930)
15. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/P/7– Annual Revisions (1916-1930)
16. PRONI VAL/3/D/3/1/P/59 First NI General Revaluation Binder 1933-57
17. PRONI Street Directories 1863-1995
18. Newry Telegraph, 10th April 1866
19. Northern Whig, 16th May 1868
20. Northern Whig, 3rd May 1869
21. Belfast Newsletter, 1st March 1870
22. Belfast Telegraph, 15th November 1873
23. Belfast Telegraph, 26th October 1875
24. Freeman’s Journal, 5th February 1880
25. Belfast Newsletter, 5th February 1880
26. Belfast Newsletter, 9th February 1880
27. PRONI Wills, Richard Bell, died 5th February 1880
28. Belfast Newsletter, 4th March 1881
29. PRONI Wills, Richard Bell, died 30th July 1885
30. Armagh Standard, 18th June 1886
31. Northern Whig, 20th August 1886
32. Belfast Weekly News, 9th June 1888
33. Newry Telegraph, 5th January 1889
34. Lisburn Standard, 19th January 1889
35. PRONI Wills Edward Harris Clarke, died 14th January 1889
36. Newry Telegraph, 3rd April 1890
37. Newry Telegraph, 8th July 1890
38. Ulster Echo, 30th April 1895
39. Northern Whig, 27th June 1896
40. PRONI Wills, Jean Baptiste Gustave Lefevre, died 1st September 1897
41. Northern Whig, 30th September 1898
42. PRONI Wills, Lucy Lefevre, died 4th February 1899
43. Northern Whig, 7th February 1908
44. Belfast Newsletter, 4th July 1913
45. Belfast Weekly Telegraph, 20th September 1913
46. Strabane Weekly News, 31st July 1915
47. NMNI Hogg Collection, BELUM.Y2401 and 2402, dated 1916, images of E & W Pim shop
48. Belfast Telegraph, 13th July 1916
49. PRONI Wills, Edward Wakefield Pim, died 11th April 1919
50. Larne Times, 19th April 1919 (obituary with photo of E W Pim)
51. Larne Times, 25th December 1926
52. Belfast Newsletter, 19th October 1928
53. PRONI Wills, William Baptist Gamble, died 10th December 1928
54. Northern Whig, 13th June 1930
55. Northern Whig, 6th September 1952

Secondary Sources:

56. Carleton, Samuel Trevor (1967) The Growth of South Belfast. Unpublished MPhil thesis, Queen’s University Belfast
57. Dictionary of Irish Architects (www.dia.ie)
58. Dixon, Hugh (1978). Honouring Thomas Jackson, 1807-1890. Belfast Natural History and Philosophical Society. Proceedings and Reports. 2nd Series. Vol 9, pp.23-31
59. Pim, Edward Wakefield. (1895) Sketch of the rise and progress of the water supply to Belfast: with some extracts relative to the origin of the Charitable Society. Belfast: Belfast City and District Water Commissioners.
60. Simpson Noel (1975). The Belfast Bank 1817-1970. Belfast: Blackstaff Press Ltd on behalf of Northern Bank Ltd.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

R. Age
S. Authenticity
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Mid Victorian, built circa 1860, no 88 forms the central property in a group of three buildings which are delineated on the earlier maps as 'Elmwood Terrace'. This group is a fine surviving example of a three storey over basement terrace on one of the main arterial routes into Belfast and on the axial approach to the Queen's Conservation Area. Constructed in brick with decorative diaper pattern to walling below eaves, the terrace is located on the southern side of the Lisburn Road at the junction with Elmwood Avenue. No 88 is of significance for the level of retention of historic fabric, both internally and externally with good brick detailing, historic sash windows, staircase, plasterwork, good joinery, basement arrangement with stone steps and original metal railings and front boundary walling in brick with stone dressings to coping.

This mid-Victorian terrace, home to the mercantile classes for decades, and latterly converted to commercial premises as the demographic of the Lisburn Road has changed, has survived in an area where several terraces of a similar age have not (e.g. Queen’s Elms, Royal Terrace, Cranbrook Terrace, Wilmont Terrace (north)). The terrace is of a style characteristic of its date, the decorative details in the cornices, doorways, and ironwork and the segmental window heads and barrel-roofed dormers distinguishing it from the terraces of an earlier era, while the overall composition is nonetheless restrained when compared to later Victorian designs.

The fact that the terrace was never completed speaks to the history of the ‘Elmwood’ estate on which it was built and perhaps also to the vicissitudes and hubris of Victorian banking in Belfast with its unfinished gable and 'hanging' fireplaces on the northern gable of no 86. The state of preservation of the terrace is otherwise overall unusually good and the building contributes significantly to the local streetscape, standing out among the surviving Victorian terraces which characterise this part of South Belfast. As part of the collective building group, no 88 is an important surviving remnant of a coherent ensemble on this stretch of the Lisburn Road.