Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB24/15/074

Address :
17-29 Mill Street Comber Co. Down BT23 5EG

Townland:
Town Parks

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Survey 2:
Record Only

Date of Listing:

Date of De-listing:

Current Use:
House - Terrace

Former Use
House - Terrace

Conservation Area:
No

Industrial Archaeology:
No

Vernacular:
No

Thatched:
No

Monument:
No

Derelict:
No

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OS Map No:
148/10

IG Ref:
J4561 6935

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Owner Category

Commercial Private Private Private Private Private Private

Exterior Description And Setting

Terrace of seven houses/shops built on the N side of Mill Street. The terrace is in two parts, that to the E contains three two and a half storey houses of c.1870-80 with gabled half dormers, whilst that to the E comprises four two storey vernacular houses of probable pre 1834 origin, now largely converted to shops. The panelled door to the S front of No.17 has a plain fanlight and is flanked by painted stone pilasters surmounted by a plain blocking course and projecting stone cornice. To the right is a top hung PVC window with astragals.(sash like). The window has in/out brick dressings and plain rendered reveals. The first floor has two evenly spaced windows as before but slightly shorter. To the second floor are two gabled half dormers with windows as before but shorter and with semicircular heads. The half dormers have decorative pierced barge boards and timber finial. Nos.19 and 21 are largely identical to No.17, but No.19 has a modern half glazed timber door and No.21 has a half glazed door and a shallower cornice to the door case. N The short sections of roof between the dormers each are drained with a separate rain water pipe. To the rear of No.17 is a single storey lean-to kitchen extension to the right. To its N side is a large multi pane PVC window. To its E side is a back door. To the left (on the main rear façade) is a modern window to ground floor with a similar window directly above to first floor. To the first floor right is a small high level window. The rear of No.19 is almost identical. The main rear façade of No.21 is slightly recessed. To the right is a two storey gabled return with a single storey lean-to extension to the left. To the first floor left of the main façade is a single modern window. There is a similar window to the left of centre of the two storey return. The ground floor of No.21 is obscured by plant growth and outhouses. The E gable is blank. The W gable rises above its neighbour, is rendered and blank. The three houses are constructed in Scrabo stone with the exception of the ground floor front of No.21 which is finished in greywacke field stone (suggesting it may have been built around a much older single storey structure). The gabled roof of this section of the terrace is covered in asbestos free slate with four brick chimney stacks and a Velux window to the rear on each property. Cast iron and PVC rw goods. A large full width modern aluminium shop front and door has been inserted into the ground floor of No.23. The sign has large metallic looking letters which spell the name ‘Comber Pet Stores’ and is externally illuminated. To the first floor are two sash like PVC windows. They are both top hung and have vertical and horizontal ‘astragals’. To the rear is a large two storey flat roofed return which is finished in plain render. The N face has a door to the ground floor right and a modern window to the first floor centre. E and W faces are blank. An open lean to roof spans from the rear wall to out houses which are used as stores. No.25 is largely in original condition. To the right is a timber sheeted front door with simple painted stone surround. To the left is a sash window without astragals. To first floor are two similar windows. To the left of the rear facade is a small single storey lean-to return with a corrugated asbestos roof. There is a modern window to the N face and a sheeted timber door to the W face. To the right is a window opening which is now blocked. To the first floor is a sash window to the right of centre. No.27 has a modern aluminium shop front with a glazed door to the left side and a large internally illuminated plastic sign board over. To the first floor is one, left of centre, sash window as per those to No.25. To the rear right side is a single storey brick-built gabled extension. To first floor is one squarish timber fixed pane window to the right of the ridge of the return roof. No.29 has a large new multi pane shop window, with wide render surround and apron, to the right side. To the left is a modern glazed door with simple painted door surround. The surround is surmounted by a simple cornice. To first floor are two sash like PVC windows, as before but with cement render bands. The rear façade has recently been finished in smooth render. To the ground floor left is a deeply recessed multi-pane door. To the first floor right is a small PVC window to the left (to the bathroom) with a larger one to the immediate right. To the far right is a tall PVC window which gives light to the landing level. To the rear of No.29 is a two storey out house the ground floor of which is used as a store and the first floor of which was recently upgraded for use as an office. The E gable is finished in random rubble greywacke stone and shows evidence of a single storey building having been removed. The gabled roof of this section of the terrace is covered in asbestos slates to front and a mixture of asbestos and Bangor Blue slates to rear . There are two recently re-build(?) chimney stacks to the centre area of the roof (above No.25). PVC rw goods to this section of the terrace

Architects

Not Known

Historical Information

This site is shown occupied on the 1722 map of Comber and all other available maps thereafter. The valuation records of 1834 state that this section of the street (then known as Mill Street) contained ‘houses exempt’ (i.e. below rateable value). It is possible that the two storey properties to west side of this stretch of terrace (Nos.23-29) were among these houses, as their greywacke construction and original vernacular appearance suggests they were built before 1834. They could well date from the 18th century. The properties to the eastern section of the terrace (Nos.17-21) are much later, perhaps dating from c.1870-80. No.21, however, may have been built around an older, single storey dwelling, for its ground floor façade is in greywacke (as opposed to sandstone), and it is not as deep as Nos.17 and 19. Nos.23 and 27 were converted to shops prior to the first survey of December 1975. 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/M54/4, 6, 7, 12, 15, 24, 28-32, 34 Londonderry Papers- Maps of Mill Street 1793-1828. 3 PRONI VAL 1B/316A p.73 1st valuation, Comber, 1834. [The valuation records of Castle/Mill Street and High Street, Comber, are very difficult to decipher. The original details of the buildings, in terms of dimensions, age/condition grading etc., dates from 1834. In 1838 (after the rateable threshold had been raised from £3 to £5), a revaluation was carried out in Comber. This entailed the making of various annotations to the original record book, the (apparent) discarding of the original valuation map and the drawing up of new one to tie in the 1838 findings. Unfortunately, the 1838 annotations do not provide dimensions or age/condition grading of the buildings and the new map has a different numbering system to that used in 1834. As a result it is extremely difficult to tell what properties the more detailed 1834 records actually refer to, making, in many cases, the correlation of buildings as they stand today with those of 1834, at best difficult and at worst impossible. The writers have tried to make as much sense of the records they can.] 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.

Criteria for Listing

Architectural Interest

Not listed

Historic Interest

Not listed

Evaluation

Varied terrace of seven houses/shops. To the east side are three two and a half storey houses of c.1870-80, with decorative gabled half dormers and sandstone and brick front facades. To the west are four two storey properties of pre 1834 origin, with greywacke rubble facades, whose vernacular appearance has been compromised by the recent insertion of modern shop fronts.

General Comments

Date of Survey

08 July 1999