Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB26/28/059 A

Address :
37 Malone Rd Belfast BT9 6RX

Townland:
Malone Lower

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Survey 2:
B1

Date of Listing:
07/11/1991 00:00:00

Date of De-listing:

Current Use:
Office - Terrace

Former Use
House - Terrace

Conservation Area:
Yes

Industrial Archaeology:
No

Vernacular:
No

Thatched:
No

Monument:
No

Derelict:
No

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OS Map No:
147/1se

IG Ref:
J3331 7219

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Owner Category

Exterior Description And Setting

End of terrace four-storey two-bay red brick late Victorian town house, built 1886-87 to designs by William Eaton, architect. Located at north end of Malone Road, Belfast, No.37 is one of terrace of nine similar houses (HB26.28.059B-I inclusive) running between Malone Avenue and Eglantine Avenue. Rectangular on plan as a group on N-S axis with ends gabled; they form one of the most impressive terraces within Malone Road Conservation Area, each having full-height bowed bay with conical slate roof. No.37 sits on corner with Eglantine Avenue and has lean-to projection and three storey gabled return built at half-landing level to rear (W), in turn abutted by three storey flat roofed red brick extension, c.1960s (of little interest) that fills rear yard. Single storey gabled porch appended to return along Eglantine Avenue (N) elevation. Building currently used as restaurant and commercial offices. Natural slate roof (Bangor Blue) with bands of fish-scale slates to bowed bay and red terracotta saw-tooth ridge tiles and finials. Large red brick chimney centred on gable end to main roof with simple corbelled brick coursing to cap and eight circular yellow clay pots; smaller red brick chimney centred on gable end to return with three octagonal yellow clay pots. Decorative timber bargeboard with pierced motif projects from main gable end. Cast iron gutter supported on scrolled terracotta brackets and projecting eaves course to front (E); bowed bay rises beyond main eaves, highlighted by cornice of classical ornamentation in stuccowork below the gutter. Materials ROOF: Natural slate RWG: Cast iron; some uPVC downpipes to rear return. WALLS: Red brick walling laid to Flemish bond with painted stucco dressings WINDOWS: Single glazed double hung painted timber sliding sash with 1/1 panes to main building and replacement top hung casements to return, unless otherwise stated. Front Elevation (E): Front elevation faces east, two bays wide with bowed bay offset to right and entrance to left side. Projecting moulded cill and string courses and continuous plat band to all floors in painted stucco. Painted stucco walling also to bowed bay, except some brick courses between each floor level. Bay windows and segmental arched door have incised decoration in stuccowork above openings with edge roll moulding. Moulded stucco hood and label stops to door surround, above painted stucco plat band on pink marble colonnettes with moulded stucco foliated caps; plain fanlight above square-headed 5-panelled replacement timber door; toothed stucco surround below plat band and decorative terracotta panel above door head. Colonnettes and terracotta panel repeated on first and second floor windows directly above door. North Elevation: North elevation on to Eglantine Avenue comprises three distinct parts: gable end to main building; flank elevation to return; and red brick extension. Relatively plain gable end compared to main facade. Bargeboard terminates in projecting terracotta eaves course on scrolled brackets as described above to east and west sides. Three windows to ground, first and second floor level in less formal arrangement; one to outer edge at each side and third off-centred to left; and two smaller round arched windows to third floor, next to eaves. Brick, soldier coursed window heads and projecting moulded stucco cill courses continue from front elevation, painted. Ground floor windows to right replaced with modern, plain casements having top-hung night vents; flush painted modern door with plain over-light in place of left window. Replacement timber top-hung casement windows to return, single glazed; ditto left hand window, main gable. Gabled porch in red brick stretcher bond centred on return, with stained timber entrance door, boxed eaves, slate roof, black clay ridge tiles and uPVC gutter and downpipe. Flat roofed three-storey extension stitched to west side of return, with boxed eaves, three wide metal casement windows, painted concrete heads and cills; single storey flat-roofed porch to west side. West elevation: West elevation faces on to shared alley. Two bays wide with three-storey gabled return to right (S); two-storey lean-to projection to left (N), shallower in plan; and further three-storey flat-roofed extension, blank save plain flush door to right side. Chimney as described above to gable end of return, otherwise blank. Main building and returns plainly detailed, as north elevation. 1 /2 panes to third floor window above gabled return at left side; 2/2 panes to window at third floor half landing level to right; first and second floor lean-to half-landing windows replaced with narrower top-hung casement windows. South Elevation: Main building south elevation abutted by No.39 Malone Road (HB26.28.059B). Flank elevation to extension detailed as north elevation. Set back from tree-lined street by paved front gardens bound by low walling with replacement railings on the west side of the Malone Road, building forms end of terrace to eight other similar town houses, rectangular on plan and aligned parallel to main road. Located directly opposite Fisherwick Presbyterian Church (HB26.17.014) and from this aspect, at corner of Chlorine Gardens, it is most impressive.

Architects

Eaton, William

Historical Information

Nos.37-53 Malone Road were built in 1886-88 to a design by the then Botanic Avenue-based architect, William Eaton, on what had been the grounds of Eglantine Hill, a pre-1832 house bounded by the Malone and Lisburn Roads in the east and west what is now Malone and Eglantine Avenues to the north and south. The terrace, originally named ‘Windsor Gardens’, was built for James Johnston, possibly the insurance agent of that name listed in contemporary directories as operating out of Waring Street. The whole grouping appears to have been completed by mid-1888, and all of the properties are recorded as occupied in the earliest available directory of 1890. No.37 – The first occupant of this building seems to have been Robert W. Gordon, a magistrate. Around 1894 the tenancy was taken up by Samuel Charles, a hardware merchant ‘cabinetmaker & general house furnisher’, who remained there until 1899-1900. In the 1901 census the property is listed as a 1st class welling containing 15 rooms in the hands of civil engineer Henry Riddell, his wife Mary Jane, their four children, as well as Mary Jane’s parents and a domestic servant. By 1907 a Mrs Irvine Smith was in residence and by 1911 Miss Margaretta C. Angwin (or Augwin), a domestic science teacher who appears to have been running a school from the premises, as she is listed in the census of that year having three pupils boarding with her. The property is noted as vacant in 1915, with a ‘manager’ named G.H. Allibon living there in 1920. Sometime in the early 1920s, J. O’Doherty, a surveyor, became the occupant, remaining until c.1947 when the property was acquired by the architectural firm of McLean & Forte. This practice still owns and occupies a section of the building, but since the mid-1950s has rented parts of it to various businesses including engineering consultants, the Provident Mutual Assurance Association, a finance company, as well as fellow architects. The ground floor was converted to a restaurant c.1999. The building seems to have retained its original form until the 1960s, when the large flat roofed return extension was added. The property was listed in November 1991.A small porch projection was added to the north side of the original return c.2005 with a window to this side converted to a doorway around the same date. References – Primary sources 1 PRONI VAL12B/43D/14 annual valuation revision book, 1882-97 2 PRONI OS8/30/3/49 OS town plan of Belfast, 1883-84 3 ‘Belfast Telegraph’, 5 August 1886 4 ‘Belfast and Province of Ulster Street Directory’, (Belfast News-Letter, Belfast), various dates from 1887 to 1996 5 ‘Belfast News-Letter’, 23 April 1887 6 ‘Belfast Telegraph’, 15 September 1887 7 PRONI OS8/30/4/49 OS town plan of Belfast, 1896 8 PRONI VAL7B/14/15 valuation of Belfast, 1900 9 PRONI OS8/30/5/49 OS town plan of Belfast, 1903 10 PRONI VAL12B/43K/4 valuation book, 1906-15 Secondary sources 1 Carleton, S.T., ‘The growth of South Belfast’, (unpublished QUB MA thesis), 1967 2 Rowan, A.J. And Brett, C.E.B., Historic Buildings...Queens University of Belfast, (UAHS, 1968)

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

Historic Interest

S. Authenticity X. Local Interest R. Age V. Authorship

Evaluation

End of terrace four-storey red brick late Victorian town house, built 1886-87 by William Eaton, architect. One of a terrace of nine similar houses comprising No.39-53 Malone Road, Belfast (HB26.28.059B-H inclusive); as a group they form one of the most impressive terraces, originally named Windsor Gardens, within the Malone Road Conservation Area. The Malone Road facade is particularly striking due to the rhythm created by each having a full-height bowed bay with conical slate roof and a wealth of ornate detailing. Despite a substantial flat-roofed extension (c1960) and some replacement windows that detract from its quality, No. 53 retains its original return, complete with chimney. Now converted for commercial and restaurant use, the domestic scale remains largely intact with fine historic detailing inside that adds significantly to its character.

General Comments

Date of Survey

09 November 2016