33-33A The Square, Portaferry, Co Down, BT22 1LR

33-33A The Square, Portaferry

A low, well-proportioned terrace block of probable late 18th-century construction, originally built as a dwelling and now containing two shops and an apartment. The building sits within the terrace on the east side of Portaferry town Square.

The front (west) elevation is asymmetrical. On the ground floor, to the left of centre, is a modern partly glazed door serving No.33A, with a modern fixed light and timber shop window (bearing a painted wooden shop sign) immediately to its left. At the far left is a plywood-sheeted door providing rear access. To the right of centre is a panelled and glazed door serving No.33, with a modern four-pane shop window to its right. The first floor contains four unevenly spaced windows: the three to the left are small with modern frames, while the leftmost is a large completely modern window. The front façade is finished in lined render and painted, with an eaves course, cast iron downspout and guttering, and prominent electric cabling at eaves level.

The rear of No.33A is largely obscured by a two-storey return belonging to No.33. The visible portion has a modern 15-pane window to the centre of a small flat-roofed porch extension, with a modern window to the first floor and a further modern timber window to the flat-roofed attic dormer.

The rear of No.33 features a large two-storey return with a hipped and slated roof. The east face has two sash windows; the north face has two similar sash windows to the left and a modern window to the right. At the east end is a single-storey brick return (three-quarters width) with a shallow pitched, felt-covered roof. The east face has a steel-clad door at the centre with a sash window on either side, accessed by four steps. The pitched roof is covered in Bangor blue slates with two original cast iron skylights. A narrow cement parapet runs along the partly exposed gable to the right, with a cement-rendered chimney stack (without pots) also to the right. Each gable abuts its higher neighbour.

Historical Development

A building on this site is shown in the possession of a Widow Donning on Patrick O'Hare's map of 1799. The 1838 valuation returns record a relatively old (graded 'B', possibly from the 1790s) two-storey dwelling house then occupied by Widow McKibbin and Miss Cahey—likely the same building visible today. In 1863 the occupant was Mary Morris. During the early 1900s the property was acquired by the Leeman family, who were apparently well known locally for holding large tea parties. The shopfront to No.33 was inserted before 1975, with the ground floor of No.33 converted to a shop sometime after that date. According to the present owner, the large hall was previously hired out as a dance hall and for dance classes, possibly until the 1950s.