9 Mount Charles, Belfast

No. 9 Mount Charles is a three-storey with attic, mid-terraced brick townhouse with a pitched roof, designed by Alexander MacAlister (c.1821–97), a Carlow-born architect who spent his entire career in Belfast working almost exclusively in counties Antrim and Down. It was constructed in 1859 as the fourth house from the right in a unified terrace of nine (Nos. 3–19 Mount Charles). The land was developed by Bernard ('Barney') Hughes (1805–78), a noted philanthropist and Armagh-born baker who eventually became Belfast's master baker and the owner of Ireland's largest milling concern.

The house is rectangular on plan with a projecting return to the rear. The terrace faces north and lines the south side of Mount Charles, a tree-lined street running between Botanic Avenue to the east and University Road to the west, within the Queen's Conservation Area. A distinctive and deliberately designed feature of the terrace is its dual aspect: the rear returns and yards back directly onto University Street, where a tall dark brown brick wall in Flemish bond — built up to the full height of the house and incorporating false windows at upper levels — presents the convincing appearance of a complete three-storey façade. This was noted at the time of construction as giving the rear return bedrooms an unusually cheerful and desirable quality.

The terrace was previewed in The Dublin Builder of 1 May 1859, whose correspondent described the houses as 'not large', with plots 'too confined', but acknowledged that the proprietor was 'sparing no expense to render them durable and elegant dwellings'. The article noted the then-fashionable bay windows applied to all of Hughes's houses, along with arrangements for hot and cold baths, sunk and covered ashpits in the yards, and other conveniences. Crucially, all materials were supplied by Hughes himself, with only the workmanship contracted out, the whole supervised by MacAlister. The terrace is very much in the late Georgian style that characterised much of the early and mid-Victorian development in the University area.

EXTERIOR

The front elevation is three storeys of red brick in Flemish bond, with a deep painted rendered plinth to the base and a matching painted rendered frieze beneath the eaves. At ground floor level, a single-storey canted bay window sits to the right, rendered and painted with moulded plaster detailing; it has a flat felt-covered roof with a projecting cornice. The doorway is to the left at ground floor level, deeply recessed with an elliptical arched head formed by brick voussoirs and a moulded plaster reveal. Ionic columns on raised moulded plaster panelled bases flank the entrance and support a moulded plaster entablature with a plain fanlight above. The cornice, columns and bases rest on two shallow replacement concrete steps, with original stone dwarf walls to each side. Remnants of an iron boot scraper are visible to the right. The timber four-panelled door appears to be original and retains its original brass handle and keyhole, though the rest of the ironmongery has been replaced and the letterbox has been covered over.

First and second floor windows above the front elevation are arranged in pairs. First floor windows are horizontally split 2/2 timber sliding sash with horns; second floor windows are 8/8 sliding sash without horns, one of which has a modern plastic vent inserted into the upper panes. The canted bay windows are also 2/2 sliding sash. Window heads at first and second floor are straight with splayed brick soldier courses. A continuous painted stone cill course runs at both first and second floor levels. A single rooflight is present at attic level, its type not visible from the street. All front windows appear to be original and are single-glazed. A cast iron ogee gutter and cast iron downpipe serve the right side of the canted bay, with an additional metal pipe from the bay parapet discharging into a separate narrow cast iron downpipe.

The pitched roof is clad in natural Welsh slate with black clay ridge tiles. Brick chimney stacks — possibly original, shared with Nos. 7 and 11 — are centred on the ridge with corbelled detailing and circular clay pots.

The east side elevation is fully abutted by No. 11 and the west side elevation is fully abutted by No. 7.

The rear elevation is three storeys, with an original three-storey return abutting on the right side, built at half-landing height and roofed with a hipped natural Welsh slate roof with black clay ridge tiles. The main rear block also has a natural Welsh slate pitched roof with one rooflight to the left side. A small 20th-century brick chimney with modern clay pots sits to the right of the rear return. An original second-floor window on the left side of the main rear elevation has been altered to form a door opening, now boarded over, with a metal fire escape landing visible. A wall vent has been installed over a replacement concrete lintel.

The rear yard is enclosed on all four sides: by the rear wall of the house, the return to the right, the return of No. 7 to the left, and the three-storey yard wall facing University Street. This University Street facade is constructed of dark brown brick in Flemish bond with a rendered plinth and eaves band, and is partially visible through a false window at second floor level from the street. The yard door to the left on the ground floor is boarded over with a painted timber panel. To the right at ground floor level is a 6/6 window, possibly original, with wrought iron bars attached to the reveals, painted stone cills, and only the horizontal sash bar surviving — all other glazing bars and glass are lost, and the opening is boarded over from inside. A diminutive square window opening to the right has been infilled with a metal vent. At first floor level there is a false multi-pane window frame without glass to the left (with wrought iron bars to the reveals) and a 6/6 window to the right with clear single-glazed panes, boarded over on the inside; these openings have shallow arched heads. At second floor level there is a false multi-pane window frame to the left (all glazing bars lost except the top three, no glass) and a 6/6 window to the right with obscure glazing, its bottom right pane smashed and boarded over internally; heads at this level are straight. A cast iron gutter sits above the painted rendered eaves band. Rear windows — where seen — are timber sliding sash without horns and appear original.

The front of the house is accessed directly from the tree-lined pavement of Mount Charles; the rear is accessed directly from the pavement of University Street via the yard door.

INTERIOR

The interior underwent major remodelling when the property was converted for use as a social club. Despite these alterations, some original historic detailing survives.

MATERIALS SUMMARY

Roof: Natural Welsh slate with black clay ridge tiles. Walls: Red brick in Flemish bond and painted render, appearing to be lime pointed. Rainwater goods: Cast iron. Windows: Timber sliding sash, single-glazed.

HISTORY AND CONTEXT

The development of this part of Belfast was shaped by the Donegall estate's granting of perpetual leases — and eventually outright sales of land — from the mid-1820s onwards, which opened up attractive plots along the Malone Ridge to developers. The following decades saw a number of relatively large-scale building projects on the northern lower slopes of the Ridge, along and branching off from what was then the Old Malone Road (now University Road), extending as far south as the newly laid out Botanic Gardens. This momentum intensified with the establishment of Queen's College in 1845, and by the end of the 1850s the area was characterised by large, graceful terraces, largely early Victorian in date but late Georgian in style.

Mount Charles occupies a trapezoidal plot between the former Old Malone Road (now University Road) and Albion Lane (the forerunner of Botanic Avenue). The plot had previously contained a house probably dating from around 1770, recorded in the 1837 valuation as a two-storey residence. In its original form the street consisted of the present Nos. 2–6, built in 1842, all three accessed by a short private lane off the main road. The old pre-1830s house was demolished around 1850, and in 1854 the lane was adapted to serve No. 1 to the south. The street was extended further eastwards in 1859 with the building of Nos. 3–19 and 8–16; Nos. 18–24 followed in 1869 and Nos. 26–50 in 1892–94, the last group linking the street through to Botanic Avenue. Despite all these additions, Mount Charles — unlike its near neighbours University Street, University Square, and Upper and Lower Crescent — never became a public thoroughfare, maintaining its private, gated character throughout.

The original tenant of No. 9 appears to have been Thomas Kennedy. After a period of vacancy, James Wallace (described as a brick manufacturer) took the house around 1869. He was succeeded, after another vacancy, by a Mrs Allen around 1882, then Hugh McCaul (described as a manager) around 1889, and O'Connell Shaw (computer of rates, Harbour Office) around 1894. In the 1901 census, Shaw is recorded as occupying No. 9 with his two grown-up daughters, two sisters and a niece; the house is described as a first-class dwelling with 11 rooms in use. Francis Atkinson was resident by 1906 and remained until around 1910, with the property recorded as vacant at the time of the 1911 census. By 1918, the occupant was A. De Muelemeester (Professor of Music), who remained there until at least 1943, followed by Harry Gregory (electrician) by 1951 and Austin Roddy (manufacturers' agent) by 1960. From around 1970 the occupant is not recorded, the directories merely noting the building as occupied.

In the later 1970s, following acquisition by Queen's University, No. 9 and its neighbour No. 7 were converted into the university's Senior Employees' Club, with major remodelling of the interior. Despite a planning application in 1996 to convert both properties to student accommodation, they continued in use as a social club until around 2004, after which both have remained vacant.

SIGNIFICANCE AND SETTING

The terrace as a whole has strong group value as part of Nos. 3–19 Mount Charles. The exterior of No. 9 retains much of its original character, proportions and detailing, including the single-storey canted bay and deeply recessed doorway with Ionic columns — details repeated throughout the terrace. The dual aspect onto both Mount Charles and University Street, a design feature executed with considerable success, contributes significantly to the character of the surrounding Queen's Conservation Area. The listing extends to the house itself, the rear yard wall, and the small stone dwarf walls to either side of the front door.