Fourways House

SJ 8498 SE, 698-1/29/11137

TARIFF STREET, No 16-18. Also known as 57 Hilton Street and 17 China Lane

II

Packing warehouse, now offices. 1906, with minor late C20 alterations. By James William Beaumont, architect, of Manchester. Red brick on a low stone plinth with ashlar sandstone dressings and moulded brick detailing. Multiple ridge roof, with a Welsh slate covering. PLAN: Rectangular plan, with centrally- placed narrow rectangular courtyard/light well accessed from streets to east and west. FRONT ( NORTH) ELEVATION. Symmetrical 8-bay frontage range to Tariff Street, of six storeys above a basement. Entrances to bays 2 and 7, with stepped approaches to altered double doorways set within ashlar surrounds. Ashlar cill band to first and sixth floor. Ground floor shop front windows with metal lintel beams and deep stall risers, and above, coupled sash windows without glazing bars to all floors. These are flat-headed, except to upper floor, where openings have semicircular arched heads below a shallow parapet. Bays 2 and 7 have triple windows, a wide central opening with narrower flanking windows, all with sash frames, and with the lintels set lower than in other six bays. The heads of these bays step up above parapet level, with a wide banded semi-circular arch to the heads of the upper floor windows. Angled corner to right returns onto Hilton Street, and incorporates ground floor single doorway with late C20 canopy. Stacked single light openings above extend to 5th floor, those above first floor in widened chamfered frontage carried on shallow side corbels. SIDE ( WEST) ELEVATION: Asymmetrical facade, with wide central vehicular entrance beneath flat metal lintel beam wagon. Windows in couples and triples, arranged 1:2:2:2:4:3:3:3, with entrance to bay 7, and raised parapet with wide arch to window heads. Remaining elevations reflect various aspects of these elevational details. INTERIOR. Load-bearing external walls carry internal frame of cast iron columns and metal cross beams. Service lifts for goods and passengers survive, together with original staircases. Exposed roof structure to attic storey. Glazed brickwork to internal courtyard to create light well.

A little-altered and prominently sited example of a distinctive Manchester commercial building type, designed by a notable Manchester architect, and a component of a significant commercial quarter. It forms a group with the adjacent canal warehouse (item 29/416) and other packing warehouses (items 29/ 85, 29/86, and 29/87)

Listing NGR: SJ8473798317