99-101 North Street

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

An attached symmetrical gable-fronted three-bay three-storey with attic stuccoed commercial block, built c.1896 and located on the northern side of North Street. Rectangular on plan, abutted by flat-roofed single-storey return to rear. Building appears to be currently vacant with a retail unit on ground floor and associated offices and storage space on upper floors.

Pitched natural slate roof running perpendicular to the street with red brick chimneystack to east; roof concealed behind raised verge to south gable-fronted elevation, which is treated as a pediment, featuring a dentilled cornice beneath a half-roundel motif to apex. Parapet gutters with uPVC hoppers and downpipes breaking through to rear (north) elevation. Walling is stuccoed over masonry construction, embellished with simplified neo-classical devices. Largely segmental-headed window openings with a wider opening to the central bay; openings to south elevation are flanked by stuccoed pilasters with fluted capitals rising to impost level, carried on continuous projecting sill courses. Windows are replacement multi-paned fixed timber casements with top-hinged lights to upper-central panes.

Gable-fronted principal south elevation comprises shallow breakfront across all floors; regularly arranged openings to first and second floors, while those to attic level are more tightly grouped. Square-headed first floor windows flanked by full-height pilasters rising to a plain entablature, the cornice of which forms the sill course of the second floor windows. Second floor windows are set within shallow segmental-headed recesses, having keyed hood mouldings, sprung from capitals of flanking pilasters. Two-stage breakfront to attic level; outer sides have square-panelled mouldings; breakfront to centre contains three window openings surmounted by dentilled pediment. Pilasters flanking attic level windows have Corinthian-style capitals, with hood mouldings and scalloped keystones over. Modernised square-headed shopfront to ground floor, concealed behind steel roller-shutter, with painted masonry fascia over, having vinyl signage affixed. Ground floor framed by painted cast-iron pilasters with fluted lower-sections and Composite-style capitals, rising to fluted consoles with foliate-motifs to round-headed pediments, which flank the moulded masonry cornice.

West elevation largely abutted by neighbouring building (No.103-105) (HB26.50.331); roof to left-side partially concealed behind red brick parapet.

Rear (north) elevation is gable-fronted and comprises machine-made red brick walls and segmental-headed window openings to second and first floors, having brick voussoirs, projecting masonry sills. Single square-headed window opening to left-side of first floor level. Openings are blocked with concrete blocks.

East elevation largely abutted by neighbouring building (No.95-97) (HB26.50.329); right-side wall is exposed and comprises machine-made red brick walling extending to a matching parapet.

Setting
Street-fronted on the north-side of North Street, the principal elevation faces south and forms part of a wider group of similarly dated commercial buildings, including Nos.95-97 to the east and Nos.103-105 to the west. The rear yard is bound by a steel-fence and a single-storey flat-roofed building to the north (not thought to relate to Nos.99-101), beyond which is a public car park.

Materials
Roof – Natural slate
RWG – uPVC
Walling – Stuccoed masonry; red brick (rear)
Windows – Multi-paned timber casements (replacements)

Historical information

Built c.1896 as commercial premises and first shown on the fourth edition OS map (1901-02).

Prior to construction the plot comprised two houses, owned by a James Birch and occupied by a haberdasher, Jane Browne and a leather merchant, Thomas Frazer. The Annual Revision records show that these houses were removed, c.1895, and replaced with the present building in the following year. Occupied by the tailors and clothiers, Craig & Co., the premises were given a rateable value of £180 in the Annual Revisions of 1896 and comprised a shop, workroom and rear yard. The company remained on these premises until at least the 1930s and contemporary maps indicate that the footprint of the main building has remained largely unaltered, except for a flat-roofed addition being added to the rear. Historic photographic evidence (c.1922) shows that the pediment to the principal elevation originally featured profiled and projecting capping, however this has since been removed.

References

Primary Sources
1. PRONI 0S/6/1/61/4 Fourth Edition OS map (1901-02)
2. PRONI OS/6/1/61/6 Sixth Edition OS map (1931)
3. PRONI OS/8/30/5/56 Town Plan (1902-05)
4. PRONI VAL/12/E/192/J/29/3 Annual Revision map (1906-16)
5. PRONI VAL/12/B/43/C/1-41 Annual Revisions (1862-1930)
6. Belfast Street Directories (1880-1951)
7. 1901 & 1911 Census
8. HB File

Secondary Sources
1. Patton, Marcus ‘Central Belfast- An Historical Gazetteer (2nd Edition)’ UAHS, Belfast (2016)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

S. Authenticity
X. Local Interest
R. Age

Evaluation

Built c.1896 as commercial premises, this stucco-fronted building is located on the north side of North Street in Belfast City Centre and displays well-balanced proportions and neo-classical devices. Originally occupied by a tailors and clothiers, the building continued in this use until at least the 1930s. Although there has been some loss of detailing and historic fabric, such as the profiled and projecting capping to the original pediment to the front elevation, the historic architectural character is largely retained. Of particular note are the decorative cast-iron pilasters flanking the shop front. The building remains a good example of this type of small commercial premises, representative of the expansion of commerce within the city during the turn of the 20th century. This building provides a significant reminder of Edwardian architecture within this section of the city centre.

General comments

also HB26/LQ283