72-82 Mantle Street

The terrace of six cottages at 72-82 Mantle Street dates from the 18th century. The front of the building is constructed from dark red brick, while the rear is of random stone rubble; numbers 72-76 have been rendered and painted. The roof is hipped at the east end (number 72) and covered with slate, incorporating four ridge chimney stacks.

The cottages are generally two storeys high, though some have attic rooms and basements, and are double-depth in plan, with several having rear extensions. The north elevation, facing Mantle Street, has a higher roofline for numbers 72-74 and a moulded eaves cornice. The left-hand pair (numbers 72-74) feature round-headed entrances with rusticated heads and foliage capitals. The doorway to number 74 includes panelled pilasters, reveals, a six-panel door with fanlight above, and a later projecting shop front with round-headed lights supported on brackets. A first-floor window is a 19th-century sash window with glazing bars. Number 76 has a late 20th-century porch and uPVC windows. Numbers 78 and 80 retain original door surrounds and late 20th-century doors, with number 80 featuring three sash windows with glazing bars. Number 82 has a doorway and a window of Georgian style, sheltered by a lean-to hood.

The west return is of brick with slate hanging to the upper half, featuring paired windows to the ground and first floors; the ground floor windows have lintels of rubbed brick, and a single attic window is set in the apex of the gable. All windows on the west return are late 20th- or early 21st-century uPVC replacements. The rear elevation has undergone more alterations, with single-storey additions and mostly modern window replacements. Number 76 has a gabled roof dormer, while numbers 74 and 80 each retain a 19th-century timber casement window to the first floor. The rear elevation was originally of a simpler design, using stone rubble in contrast to the brick facade.

Internal inspection of half the terrace revealed extensive, though incomplete, loss of original fixtures and fittings, such as fireplaces, doors, and other features. However, enough remains to suggest the original internal layout. Number 72 retains a fireplace with a cast-iron grate and wooden surround, and an original staircase in the south-east corner. Number 76 has no historic fittings, while number 78 is understood to contain some 19th-century doors and architraves. Number 82 retains its original layout, including straight-flight staircases to both the first and attic floors, a 19th-century ledge and braced cellar door, and two fireplaces with wooden surrounds; one bedroom fireplace retains its cast-iron grate. The roof carpentry remains largely intact.