50-52 James Street, Cookstown, Co Tyrone, BT80 8LT

50–52 James Street is an attached two-and-a-half-storey rendered town house dating from around 1835, situated on the rising sloped pavement along the eastern side of James Street, on the southern edge of Cookstown's commercial centre. Although altered both internally and externally, it remains a well-proportioned example of a late Georgian town house, notable for its slightly asymmetric composition, a fine classical doorcase, and exceptional detailing to the entrance lobby. It forms part of a long mixed terrace of mainly Victorian buildings ranging in age across the early to late 19th century.

The building is rectangular in plan with a single-storey extension to the rear. The front west elevation faces the street and is composed of three bays: a shopfront to the left, a central doorway, and a shopfront to the right. The café to the left has a period replacement shopfront dating from around 1990, and the hot food takeaway shopfront to the right is of similar design.

The main central doorway is an early 19th century Regency style composition set within a semi-circular headed recess. Rounded fluted pilasters with Ionic capitals are positioned to each side of the door and set on cut-stone plinth blocks. These pilasters support a horizontal entablature with a moulded Greek Revival pattern to the frieze and a projecting moulded cornice above. The entablature is surmounted by a radial fanlight set within the semi-circular headed recess. At first floor level directly above the doorway, there is a round-headed triplet window arrangement set on a shared sill, each opening fitted with a one-over-one timber sash frame. The remaining windows are flat-headed, with some arranged in pairs.

The rear east elevation contains an irregular assortment of painted timber casement windows protected by metal grilles. An upper-level doorway is accessed via a staircase with solid brick balustrades; the door is plain timber and is surmounted by a projecting tiled roof canopy set on timber brackets. The south gable elevation has flat-headed windows at first floor and attic level but is otherwise blank.

The single-storey flat-roofed extension to the rear, dating from around 1990, is set slightly below ground level with steps down to a doorway. It contains small high-level timber casement lights and is fitted with uPVC rainwater goods. The return is surrounded by low cast-iron railings and faces onto the rear access yard.

The front elevation has ruled-and-lined render with rendered quoins to either side, while the rear has dry-dash render. The roof is covered in natural slate and contains three traditional rooflights, flanked by two polychromatic potless brick chimneystacks with profiled caps.

The building's history is documented from at least 1835. On the valuation plan of around 1838, the site is shown occupied by three separate small properties of similar age, identical breadth, and identical height. The southernmost, recorded in the January 1835 valuation as a relatively newly built dwelling of quality letter '1A', was occupied by a Hugh Hagan and carried a relatively high rateable value of £11-2-9. Its dimensions are recorded as 23ft × 30 × 21, with offices measuring 28 × 17½ × 14½ and 25 × 17 × 14, and a shed of 18½ × 9½ × 5. The central house, of similar age and occupied by a Mark Devlin, had a rateable valuation of £3-18-0 and measured 12 × 30 × 21. The northernmost property was a police barracks, also relatively newly built, valued at £5-10-6 and measuring 17 × 30 × 21.

By the 1859 valuation the three properties had been consolidated into the present building, with a Henry Graves leasing it directly from the Gunning/Moore estate at a rateable value of £34. Henry Graves was succeeded as occupant by Charles H.P.D. Graves in 1883, and then by Edith Kinley as both resident and leaseholder in 1887. In 1888 the building was converted to a police barracks, before reverting to private use in 1905 when a house in Loy Street was converted to provide a new barracks. A T.J. Harbison is noted as occupant in 1908, acquiring the lease in 1912. The lease passed to Annie J. Harbinson around 1930, and by at least 1936 she was renting the building to a John Patterson. The property subsequently passed through a number of short-term occupants including James Killops, Dr J. MacLynn, Thomas M. Curry, Peter Cosgrove (who also held the lease for a period in the early 1950s), and Francis D. Flannigan, the latter becoming leaseholder in 1955. From around 1957 the building is recorded as containing a surgery, with an Annie G. Cosgrove listed as immediate lessor from approximately the same date; this use continued until at least 1972. The building is currently in use as a shop and restaurant at ground floor level, a beauty parlour at first floor, and an apartment at attic level.