Site of former No.14 Shore Street, Donaghadee, Co Down

Site of former No.14 Shore Street, Donaghadee

This site, at the corner of Shore Street and Union Street, was formerly occupied by a house that has been demolished. The building was a part single, part two storey structure of possible pre-1834 construction. It was demolished around 1980, and new dwellings were built in its place in 1981.

A survey conducted in January 1978, shortly before demolition, described the house as follows: single and two storey with hipped and slated roofs and rendered chimneys. The walls were rendered and painted white. Windows were drop hung without astragals, and the casements were recent additions. Doors were recent and panelled. Some openings were topped with flat pediments on lintels. The building was in fair condition with a front elevation approximately 30 feet wide.

The site is recorded as occupied on the town plan of circa 1771-90 and on the Ordnance Survey map of 1834. The valuation returns of circa 1838 show the property was occupied by James Lyons and had a relatively high rateable value of £6-6-0. It is possible, though not certain, that the house recorded in the 1830s was substantially the same building as that described in the 1978 survey, given its vernacular form. The occupancy record for the property continues until at least early 1978. The second valuation of circa 1861-3 is not helpful for establishing later ownership, as the accompanying town plan is missing.

The site lies within a conservation area.