15 University Square, Belfast

No. 15 University Square is an early Victorian former townhouse, built in 1852 as part of a terrace constructed in stages between 1848 and 1853. It is a three-storey-with-attic, two-bay, mid-terraced red brick building facing south onto University Square in South Belfast, a street that links University Road to the west with Botanic Avenue to the east. The terrace overlooks the Old Library (now the Queen's University Belfast Student Graduate Centre) and the northern grounds of the Lanyon Building. The building is now used as offices for the School of History and Anthropology at Queen's University Belfast. It sits approximately midway along a row of 30 former houses, flanked by No. 14 to the west and No. 16 to the east.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

University Square was laid out around 1847 under the direction of Charles Lanyon — architect of the adjacent Queen's College, built 1845–49 — on land belonging to Jane Gregg. The street was originally intended to be named Victoria Square and was developed as a direct consequence of the College's construction. The rear boundaries of the house plots followed an already-established garden boundary belonging to a pre-1832 residence whose grounds had begun to be broken up by earlier development in the 1840s. The new terrace was mainly populated by large, broadly similar but not entirely uniform, three-storey late-Georgian style brick-built terraced dwellings: Nos. 18–25 date from 1848–49, Nos. 26–27 from 1849–51, Nos. 4–17 from 1852, Nos. 28–30 from 1852–53, and the High Victorian Nos. 1–3 (on the site of three pre-1837 dwellings) from 1871.

Although Lanyon determined the layout, there is no evidence that he designed the houses themselves. Building agreements from 1847 state that the frontages were to be based on Glenfield Place, a terrace then being built on Ormeau Road. The architect of that terrace is unknown, but architectural historian Paul Larmour has suggested that the University Square properties derived from it were the work of prolific Belfast-based architect Thomas Jackson. No documentary evidence has yet confirmed this, though both the style and the fact that Jackson was later responsible for Nos. 1–3 suggest possible involvement with the whole terrace. However, odd internal layout quirks — in particular the awkwardly off-centre entrances when viewed from their respective hallways — seem uncharacteristic of Jackson's work.

The broad unity of Nos. 4–30 began to be broken in 1865 when a single-storey canted bay was added to No. 19. A two-storey version appeared on No. 23 before 1873, similar projections on Nos. 20 and 22 by 1883, and several others followed in the early 1900s — some canted (Nos. 7 and 11), some rounded (Nos. 12, 14 and 30). Most of the dormers also appear to date from the early 1900s, as does the pebbledash to No. 20. The mid to later 20th century brought changes to the rears of many properties, including extensions of various sizes. Most significantly, Queen's Film Theatre at the rear of No. 20 began as a lecture hall addition in 1968 and, following several rebuilds (the most recent and extensive around 2004), has spread into the former back gardens of a number of neighbouring properties. The whole terrace underwent major renovation around 1990–94, with the small front gardens landscaped and adapted for disabled access around 2004.

The street was originally occupied by a mixture of Queen's academics and prosperous Belfast merchants and professionals seeking quieter surroundings away from the rapidly commercialising town centre. By around 1920 it was largely occupied by medical men and their families. Following the expansion of higher education from the late 1940s, Queen's gradually acquired the properties. By 1960 the University held around two-thirds of the buildings, by 1974 all but one, and by the mid-1980s the entire terrace was in Queen's use. Two mews houses to the rear are recorded from around 1880 onwards; one remained occupied as a private dwelling until the 1960s. Both have since been demolished to make way for Queen's extensions.

HISTORY OF NO. 15 SPECIFICALLY

No. 15 was among the "fourteen new houses building" noted in the 1852 Belfast street directory. Its recorded occupants include: the Reverend Edward J. Hartrick of Magdalene (Church of Ireland) Church in Donegall Pass (1858–59); Finlay McCance, a linen merchant with offices in Calender Street (around 1861, with the property valued at £43 for rateable purposes and William Linden as immediate lessor); Henry H. Bottomley, described as "sub-sheriff" (around 1868–74); John Greenhill, "grain and coal merchant" (around 1874–82); Thomas Matthews of Miller, Boyd and Reid's (around 1882–85); the Reverend J. D. Crawford, Minister of Berry Street Presbyterian Church (around 1885–91); S. G. Ruby, United States Consul (around 1891–94); J. Black, linen merchant (around 1895–1900); and John Lowenthal (around 1901–06). In the 1901 census, Mr Lowenthal (aged 37) was living there with his sister Annie and a domestic servant, the house recorded as a first-class dwelling with 16 rooms in use. William D. O'Brien of George O'Brien and Co. stayed briefly around 1906–07. Dr Alexander Gardener Robb moved in around 1909 and was recorded in the 1911 census living there with his sister Haidee Robb and a domestic servant; the Robbs remained until around 1941. The property was then acquired for government use during the remainder of the war years. W. Vernon Smyth became householder around 1946, but by 1955 Queen's had acquired the property, using it successively as offices for the Department of Chemistry, the Department of French (from around 1965), and the Department of Semitic Studies (from around 1968), a role it appears to have retained into the 1990s. It is now part of the offices for the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. The building was listed in 1979.

EXTERIOR

The front (south) elevation is a flat, restrained red brick facade in Flemish bond — a feature that distinguishes No. 15 from several neighbouring houses which acquired bay or bow windows during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The facade rises three storeys with attic over a plain rendered plinth, and is finished at the top with a corbelled painted stone cornice with lead to the parapet edges. The roof is pitched natural Welsh slate (a replacement) with red clay ridge tiles. The two brick chimneys — with corbel detailing, rebuilt, and shared with neighbouring properties — each carry seven yellow clay pots.

The entrance is on the left side of the ground floor. It features an elliptical arched head with brick voussoirs and a moulded plaster reveal, deeply recessed, with fluted columns with Doric-type capitals to each side supporting a plain painted rendered entablature with moulded cornice. This doorcase detail is repeated throughout the terrace row. The fanlight is leaded stained glass with the number "15" at its centre. The door itself is an original painted, raised-and-fielded four-panelled timber door, though the original ironmongery has been replaced. To the right of the door at ground floor level are two single window openings, both 1/1 sliding sash with no horns and separate painted stone cills. At first floor level there are two 1/1 sliding sash windows over a continuous painted stone cill course, and at second floor level two 6/6 sliding sash windows with separate painted stone cills. The first and second floor windows are aligned with each other but not with those on the ground floor. All windows to the front are original timber sliding sash, single-glazed, with painted rendered reveals and splayed brick heads. Two small modern rooflights are set into the south roof slope. There are no rainwater goods visible on the front elevation; the parapet gutter is hidden, likely formed in lead.

Access from the street is via four replacement reconstituted stone steps with modern metal railings on either side. The small front garden is now paved with concrete paving stones and has flower beds formed with dwarf brick walls with reconstituted stone copings. The boundary wall to the street is a low Flemish bond brick wall (not original) with a reconstituted stone coping beneath replacement painted metal railings.

Both side elevations are fully abutted by the neighbouring properties — No. 14 to the west and No. 16 to the east.

The rear (north) elevation is painted render and rises three storeys. It is abutted on the right side by a two-storey return, which is itself abutted by a two-storey mews building to the north. A yard is enclosed by the main rear elevation, the side wall of the rear return, the south wall of the mews building, and the side wall of the rear return to No. 16. All walls to the rear are painted render with a painted rendered plinth. All rear windows have plain reveals and painted stone cills and are timber sliding sash without horns unless otherwise noted. Rainwater goods to the rear are painted metal; the soil pipe is plastic.

The exposed section of the main rear elevation on the left side has a window opening on each level, all with 6/6 sashes. At second floor half-landing level, above the roof of the rear return on the right side, is an arched opening containing a timber 10/6 window. Above this, aligned at attic half-landing level, is a smaller 3/3 window. A dormer window to the left side of the rear roof slope has lead to its sides and cheeks and a timber top-hung window.

The east side wall of the rear return has a paired 6/6 window to the ground floor on the left side, and three regularly spaced 6/6 windows at first floor level. A single-storey lean-to on the south wall of the mews building spans between the returns of Nos. 15 and 16, with a natural slate roof and a modern flush timber back door. A 20th-century metal glazed conical rooflight serves the first-floor landing of the rear return and is visible from the second-floor half-landing window; it sits on a leaded flat section of the return roof. The roof to the return and mews building is hipped natural slate with red clay ridge tiles.

The rear elevation of the mews building onto the alleyway has two windows to the ground floor with a door opening between them: a 3/6 sash on the left, a flush timber door in the centre, and a 3/3 sash on the right, with metal grilles attached to the reveals of both windows. To the first floor there are three window openings: a 6/6 sash to the left, a 6/6 sash in the centre, and a 3/6 sash on the right. Further modern buildings lie to the rear of the mews building onto University Square Mews.

INTERIOR AND ALTERATIONS

Internally, there have been changes to the original floor plan, though some original features survive. The early to mid-1990s refurbishment of the whole terrace included renewal of No. 15's roof coverings, chimney and rainwater goods, render to the rear and return, and replacement of some return window frames; internal walls were re-plastered and some woodwork replaced. Around 2003–04, a rear extension was demolished to make way for the new Queen's Film Theatre, and the front garden was adapted for disabled access around the same time.

SETTING AND GROUP VALUE

No. 15 forms part of a coherent terrace (Nos. 4–30 University Square) despite variations to individual facades introduced over time. The terrace carries strong group value and makes a significant contribution to the character of the Queen's Conservation Area.