44-46 High Street, Comber, Co. Down, BT23 5HL

44-46 High Street, Comber

A small single-storey vernacular house of probable pre-1834 origin, situated near the south-west end of a terrace on the south-east side of High Street. The building was originally constructed as two separate properties, which were internally amalgamated in 1986 during a sympathetic renovation and restoration of the whole terrace.

The house is built on sloping ground rising north-east to south-west. The front north-west façade features a doorway to the left with a timber-sheeted and glazed door with plain fanlight. To the right of this are two sash windows with horizontal glazing bars, each with 2 panes over 2, set at slightly differing levels. A further doorway to the far right (formerly the entrance to No. 46) has a dummy door matching the first.

To the rear right is a small single-storey gabled return with a doorway on the south-west face, similar to the front door but with a large single glazed pane, and a relatively small double sash window to its right. The gable of the return is blank and shared with the neighbouring property to the north-east. On the rear façade of the main house to the left of the return are two small sash windows. The entire façade is finished in roughcast and painted. The gabled roof and return roof are covered in natural slate. A single rendered chimney stack is present. The rainwater goods are aluminium.

The site is shown as occupied on a 1722 map of Comber. The property was originally two separate dwellings, likely among the 'seven houses exempt' (below rateable value) noted at this end of High Street in the 1834 valuation. The valuers recorded that these houses were of reasonable age at that stage and may have dated from the 1790s or slightly later. The entire terrace on this side is believed to have once housed workers from the nearby brewery (later the Upper Distillery) and may have been purpose-built for this use. High Street was known as Cow Lane during the 18th and early 19th centuries.

In 1920 the terrace was acquired by Andrews flax spinning mill for use as employee housing. In 1980 it was vested in the Housing Executive, and in 1984 the properties were acquired by Hearth Housing Association. The building was renovated and restored in 1986, at which time the two smaller dwellings were amalgamated to create the present single house.