16 Knockbreda Park, Belfast, BT6 0HB

16 Knockbreda Park is an excellent example of a 1930s semi-detached suburban house, designed by Belfast-based architect Thomas H. Guthrie. Located near Ormeau Road approximately 3 kilometres from the city centre, it sits within a residential area of mainly late 19th and early 20th century red-brick semi-detached housing. The house is part of a group of similar interwar houses and represents a significant departure from traditional Edwardian building techniques, marking an early move towards International style architecture in modest domestic design.

The building is two storeys with a double-pitched roof, rectangular in plan with a small single-storey return to the rear. The exterior remains virtually unchanged, retaining its original plan form, metal-framed windows, and internal features including original stairs, balustrade, and joinery.

The front elevation faces south and features a distinctive curved breakfront with quadrant-profiled curves adjoining the main façade. A large rectangular multi-paned single-glazed metal window sits within the breakfront at ground floor level, with identical glazing directly above at first floor level. Both window openings, frames, and glazing curve in quadrant profile to meet the south façade. A narrower portrait-style multi-paned metal window is positioned at first-floor level to the left, above the front door. The front door sits to the left of the elevation, finished in painted timber with half glazing and timber panelling to the lower section and stained glass to the upper. The door opening has rustic red-clay brick coins on the side reveals, a concrete semi-circular projecting hood at the door head, and one recessed concrete step. All window openings are square-headed with plain reveals and concrete cills. The walls are finished in slapdash render, painted white, with deep overhanging eaves featuring plain painted timber soffits and fascia. The roof is double-pitched with natural Welsh slate to the front and blue-black clay tiles to ridge and hip. A large single red-brick chimney sits centrally within the shared roof with number 18, plainly detailed with a slightly projecting double soldier course in brown brick at the cap and a single ventilation cowl (original clay pots appear to have been removed). uPVC guttering is present throughout.

The rear elevation faces north and contains a small single-storey return with mono-pitched roof to the right and a large rectangular multi-paned single-glazed metal window to the left. The return has a small rectangular painted timber casement window on the north façade and an original painted timber door on the east façade, accessed via ad hoc timber steps and covered with a corrugated monopitch hood. At first floor level, a similar window sits directly above the large ground floor window, with another narrower window to the right. The roof finish here is fibre-cement rather than slate. Walls, guttering, and other detailing match the front elevation.

The west side elevation is plainly detailed with four randomly positioned multi-paned single-glazed metal windows (three at ground level and one at first floor level). Two narrow windows at ground floor serve the hall and under-stairs toilet, with a square kitchen window to the right. A larger portrait-style stairwell window at first floor level features patterned obscure glazing panes. The east side elevation abuts number 18 Knockbreda Park.

Materials throughout include slapdash painted render to walls, single-glazed multi-pane metal windows, natural Welsh slate to the front roof with fibre-cement to the rear, and uPVC rainwater goods.

The setting comprises a small front garden with tarmacadam driveway to the left and a large flower bed bounded by hedgerow to the south and east. The driveway is accessed via 20th-century painted metal gates mounted on replacement concrete posts. To the rear is a lawned area bounded by hedgerow to the east and wire fence to the north. A plain rectangular single-storey shed with double-pitched felt roof, horizontal timber boarding to walls, and concrete plinth sits at the west boundary, featuring a single window to the east and large boarded painted timber double doors to the south (replacement).

Knockbreda Park was developed from the grounds of Knockbreda Rectory, built in 1816. Following an 1885 opening of the western section of the grounds near present-day Ormeau Road, a series of red-brick detached and semi-detached suburban dwellings were constructed. In the later 1890s, larger similarly-styled detached properties were added fronting the main road (present numbers 400-414 Ormeau Road), with numbers 4 and 6 beginning the main east-west stretch of Knockbreda Park. This thoroughfare was further developed eastwards largely in the 1930s.

Number 16 was built in 1936-37 as part of the final development of "attractive semi-detached villas" by Manor House Estate, with William Patterson as contractor. House Type A cost £475 and Type B cost £600. Architect Thomas H. Guthrie, Belfast-based, designed the development as part of his work on several private developments in the city during the 1930s. The 1943 directory lists the occupant as John Rowland, a claims officer, who remained resident into the 1960s before leaving prior to 1967. The present owner acquired the property prior to 1980. The house represents an early and rare example of a modest house type and is an important predecessor to the common semi-detached house prevalent today.