Street Sign at Strangford Avenue on corner with Shrewsbury Park, Belfast

Tiled Street Sign at Strangford Avenue

This is a tiled street sign supported on a fluted cast iron post, located in Strangford Avenue at the junction with Shrewsbury Park in Belfast. It is a fine example of the standardised street furniture erected by Belfast Corporation in the early twentieth century, following their takeover of the city's tram system.

The sign itself comprises individual 5 inch tall glazed tiles, each bearing a white letter on a black background, spelling "STRANGFORD AVENUE" and set on a cast iron back plate. Blank tiles fill the extra space on the lower row, and moulded black tiles form the sign's perimeter, which is restrained with a wrought iron strap. The sign measures 14 inches high, with its width determined by the number of letters in the street name. The back plate is bolted to the post in 4 places at the rear. Overall, the sign stands 64 inches tall. The fluted circular post tapers from 3 inches wide at the top to 3.25 inches at the octagonal base, with a projecting ring at top and bottom. A ball finial projects above the tiled sign.

Before the early 1900s, Belfast street signs lacked uniformity, with developers and residents installing signs of varying styles. Standardisation began in late 1904 when Belfast Corporation's Police Committee established a sub-committee to investigate the matter. Initially, enamel signage was proposed, but in July 1907 this decision was rescinded. Councillors agreed that tile street signs should be used on leading thoroughfares and iron signs on other streets, in accordance with submitted patterns, and prohibited hanging or projecting signs on main routes. This drive towards uniformity was prompted by the city's rapid growth and the need for legible street identifiers, and likely given further impetus by the Corporation's 1905 takeover and electrification of the city's tram system.

The freestanding white on black ceramic signs appear to have been introduced or at least widely adopted around 1907, possibly first along tram routes. The regularity of surviving examples—distinctive sans serif lettering and fluted cast-iron columns with ball finials—suggests all are Corporation installations from 1907 onwards. Cast-iron columns holding freestanding signs began to be superseded by square section concrete posts around the early 1930s. This concrete version was in use on newly developed streets by 1951, and the Corporation continued to advertise tenders for glazed tile sign letters until late 1955.

Strangford Avenue's western half was laid out in the late 1920s and extended eastwards in the early 1930s. This sign is likely of the late 1920s, and appears to be one of the last installed on a cast-iron column, as contemporary neighbouring streets have signs with concrete supports.

The sign has group value with other nearby listed street signs at Broomhill Park, Broomhill Park Central, and Harberton Park Malone. It forms part of Belfast's rich legacy of cast iron street furniture, which includes Parliamentary Boundary Posts, Post Boxes, and Telephone Kiosks, and is of historic interest to the citizens of Belfast.