33 Bridge Street, Banbridge, Co Down, BT32 3JL

33 Bridge Street, Banbridge

A three-storey two-bay mid-terrace commercial premises erected around 1860. The building occupies a narrow plot on the east side of Bridge Street in the town centre, adjacent to "The Cut", with lean-to structures to the rear. It is flanked by adjoining buildings to both sides.

The principal east-facing elevation is asymmetrically arranged. The ground floor contains a timber-sheeted and panelled shop-front with a display window and awning over, and a replacement timber-sheeted door. The first and second floors each have paired timber top-hung casement windows with stop-chamfered surrounds. Centrally positioned between the first and second floors is a clock face with painted surrounds and the inscription "THE CLOCK. BANBRIDGE" — a distinctive feature that gives the building considerable character. Above the clock runs a dentilled moulded hood moulding with label stops. The facade is rendered in stucco with vermiculated flush quoins. The left (north) gable is abutted by the adjacent building; a single window is set left of centre within the gable head. The right (south) gable is similarly abutted by the adjoining building at 31 Bridge Street.

The roof is pitched mineral fibre slate (replacement). Historic moulded corbelled eaves have been removed, as has a chimney. Rainwater goods are replacement uPVC. The rear elevation is covered by a lean-to roof, with a single centrally positioned second-floor window. To the rear stand a small timber shed and a masonry outbuilding (not accessible), beyond which are overgrown grounds and a car park.

Historical Development

The building first appeared on the second edition Ordnance Survey map for Banbridge (1860) as a small structure along Bridge Street. By the Griffiths Valuation of circa 1863, it was valued at £12 and occupied by Hugh Brownlow, a writing clerk employed in the area, who leased the property from the Marquis of Downshire. Brownlow remained there until his death in 1869, after which the property passed to William Mann.

Mann and his brother established the first watch-making and jewellery business on the premises, operating as "Mann Brothers" until 1900. The business then came into the possession of Henry D. Fleming, who maintained a jewellery and watch shop under the name "Fleming Bros." The 1901 Census recorded Fleming living at the site with his family and his brother Frederick, both described as watchmakers. The Census Building return classified the property as a first-class shop and dwelling comprising six rooms, with stable, piggery, shed and store as outbuildings. By 1911, Henry Fleming was the sole brother still working at the site, though the business retained the name "Fleming Bros." The Census return for that year downgraded the property to a second-class dwelling, though the reason is unknown. No further alterations were recorded until 1930.

The clock was originally installed by Fleming, who used instruments to set the correct time by solar observations. According to the First Survey record, Fleming would fire a cannon at midnight as part of his time-keeping routine, demonstrating the accuracy of his observations.

In 1969, the architectural historian C. E. B. Brett described No. 33 as "a small thin 3-storey jewellers shop squeezed between two squatter ones ... [possessing] vermiculated quoins and a nice stucco eyebrow moulding over the clock set between the first-floor windows." The building was listed in 1977. The building that abutted the north side has since been replaced by the modern Northern Bank. No. 33 continues to operate as a jewellery shop, currently under the name "George Armstrong Jeweller," which a shop-front sign states was established in 1964.

Although much historic fabric has been lost through alterations, the building retains considerable character through the survival of its distinctive clock and the quality of its stucco facade. It is of interest for its local history and represents the ongoing commercial development of Banbridge town centre.