54-60 Castle Street, Comber, Co. Down, BT23 5DZ

54–60 Castle Street is a two-storey terraced block of three properties on the south side of Castle Street, close to Comber town centre, County Down. The group is of probable pre-1834 origin — most likely built between 1800 and 1819 — and the site is shown as occupied on a 1722 map of Comber and on all subsequent available maps. Originally dwellings, the three properties have been substantially altered over time and now contain two shops and a dental surgery. Castle Street was also known as Mill Street during the 18th and early 19th centuries.

No. 54, at the eastern end of the group, is currently a barber's shop. Its north-facing front façade has a modern shop front at ground floor level, with a large window and a glazed door, and tiling to the remainder of the ground floor frontage. At first floor level, the two former window openings have been converted to louvred vents, though they retain their simple moulded surrounds. The first floor façade is finished in plain painted render, with in-and-out quoins to the left and a projecting sign positioned between the first floor openings. To the rear, there is a small ground floor extension to the right with a mono-pitched roof, a modern door, and a window on its west face. To the left of this, on the main rear façade, is a window with a modern frame. At first floor level are two similar windows, the right-hand one of which is now blocked from the inside with breeze blocks. The rear façade is finished in roughcast. The gabled roof is covered in natural slate and has a large Velux window to the front and one to the rear. Rainwater goods are PVC.

No. 56, the central property, retains much of its original front façade in appearance and still presents as a dwelling house from the street, although it has been used as a dental surgery since 1994, when it was completely gutted and rebuilt internally. On the ground floor of the north-facing front façade, to the left, there is a panelled door with a simple stone surround and cornice. To the right are two windows with simple moulded surrounds and PVC frames. At first floor level are two similar windows, set further apart than those below. A projecting sign — apparently a neon toothbrush — is positioned between the first floor windows. The front façade is finished in lined render and painted, with in-and-out quoins to the right and a chamfered base. At the rear, the entire ground floor is now covered by a modern single-storey flat-roofed extension. At first floor level are two small windows with PVC frames. The rear façade is finished in unpainted roughcast. The gabled roof is covered in natural slate with a Velux window to the rear. There are two rendered chimney stacks and PVC rainwater goods.

No. 58–60, at the western end of the group, is considerably larger than the other two properties and was at one stage two separate properties, though it may originally have been built as a single structure. Its north-facing front façade has a large modern shop front at ground floor level, with a large window to the left and to the right, glazed doors between them, and a long PVC sign above. At first floor level there are five symmetrically positioned windows with Georgian-paned sash frames in a six-over-six configuration, along with two internally illuminated PVC signs. The first floor is finished in lined painted render and the ground floor in plain painted render. The west gable is blank and finished in plain painted render. To the rear, on the left, is a single-storey flat-roofed projection, blank on its south face. To the right of this is a larger, full-height flat-roofed projection with a modern window at upper level on its south face. The roof of the smaller projection extends beyond its east face to meet the west face of the larger projection, forming a platform that allows access to and from the building via a PVC door at upper floor level on the main rear façade, with ground-level access provided by steps leading down from this platform. To the far right at ground floor level on the rear façade is a lean-to projection with a corrugated iron and PVC roof. Above this, at first floor level on the main rear façade, is a moderately sized window with a modern frame. The main rear façade is built in painted rubble, the coursing of which suggests greywacke rather than sandstone. The various projections are finished in a mixture of plain render and roughcast. The gabled roof is covered in natural slate with a small Velux window to the rear. There are three rendered chimney stacks and PVC rainwater goods.

The historical significance of the group centres on No. 58–60, which appears — on the basis of its dimensions, which match those recorded in the 1834 valuation, and its rubble construction — to correspond to the building that served as Comber's House of Industry, or poor house, between 1826 and 1841. The House of Industry was a charitable institution established in Comber in 1826 to provide assistance to the local poor. By 1837 it was reported to house 18 inmates engaged in flax spinning, and also served as a centre for coordinating outdoor relief, with up to 70 needy families receiving provisions. Following the passing of the Poor Law Act in 1838, a universal system of poor relief was introduced across Ireland and large purpose-built workhouses were erected. As a result, the functions of the Comber House of Industry were taken over by the new workhouse built at Newtownards in 1841, and this property was vacated. After that point, the building appears to have been converted back into one or more dwelling houses. From at least the mid-20th century, the property has contained shop premises at ground floor level with an apartment above.

The 1834 valuation records note that this section of the street — then known as Mill Street — contained seven houses below rateable value. No. 56 remained a dwelling house until around 1993–94, when it was completely gutted and converted to a dental surgery. No. 54 was still in use as a dwelling house when first surveyed in December 1975, subsequently became a wool shop, and is now a barber's.