17 Charlemont Square East, Bessbrook, Co.Armagh

A two-storey, two-bay mid-Victorian terraced house built between 1862 and 1866 to designs by an unknown architect. The building has an L-plan form facing southwest with a single-storey flat-roofed rear return.

Number 17 forms one of twenty-seven similar houses that, together with five larger two-and-a-half storey shop buildings to the southeast, comprise the eastern terrace of Charlemont Square. This formally designed mid-Victorian square consists of 66 buildings in total, arranged on three sides around a central green and primarily accessed from Fountain Street to the southeast.

The walling is constructed of randomly coursed rock-faced local Newry Granodiorite with painted red brick dressings. Stone cills and stepped red brick surrounds frame the gauged-brick cambered door and window openings, though the doorway and window heads are now generally squared off with painted smooth cement render. The pitched roof is covered in fibre cement with angled black clay ridge tiles. A rectangular-section red brick chimney to the northwest has a single terracotta pot. The eaves are flush with a red brick corbel course; metal rainwater goods with half-round guttering are installed throughout.

The principal elevation facing southwest is near symmetrical and flush with the main terrace of houses, which is narrowly set back from the larger shop buildings at its southeastern end. A modest paved front yard is enclosed by smooth render dwarf walling topped with hooped metal railings, with a similar painted metal foot gate to the southeast. A paved path leads from the gate to a panelled painted timber door positioned to the southeast of the façade; the door has two glazed panels to the upper half and black iron door furniture. The façade displays a regular fenestration pattern with two windows at first-floor level aligned with ground-floor openings. All windows are double-hung 1/1 sliding timber sash windows with window horns and exposed sash boxes.

The building is attached on the northwest to Number 18 Charlemont Square East.

The northeast elevation is the rear elevation, which faces northeast and is enclosed by rock-faced randomly coursed stone walling bounding a concrete yard accessed through a planked painted timber door from the rear access route. At ground-floor level to the southeast end, there is an increased-width side-opening casement window with replacement concrete cill; a double-hung sliding timber sash window occupies the centre elevation at first-floor level. From the northwest end of the façade, a single-storey rear return projects northeast to the yard boundary wall. This rear return has rough-cast cement render and a flat felt-covered roof. The southeast side of the rear return has a painted timber door with glazed top half and a top-opening timber casement window to its right; a separate boiler house, accessed from the yard through a painted flush timber door, is positioned to the right of the window. The rear elevation generally has a smooth rendered finish with concrete cills and a timber casement window at ground-floor level with original stone walling above. The rear return has rough-cast cement render and uPVC rainwater goods.

The building is attached on the southeast to Number 16 Charlemont Square East.

Charlemont Square comprises a planned arrangement of 66 mill workers' dwellings and shops forming a formal square with East, North and West terraces arranged around a central green. Each house is set back from the perimeter public road and footpath with a modest front yard typically enclosed by dwarf walling topped by hooped metal railings. The East and West terraces are initially stepped in groups of two dwellings, respecting the subtle relief of the site. Each dwelling generally has a larger rear yard enclosed by randomly coursed rubble stone walling, with a square-headed door opening onto a wide rear access route. Rear façades are much altered with various extensions of different shapes and sizes. Front façades are nearly uniform along the East and West terraces, with the larger buildings mentioned above featuring traditional shop fronts at ground-floor level and dwellings above. The northern terrace comprises only eight houses, which are distinctly larger two-and-a-half storey paired buildings. The central area of the square is now laid to lawn and enclosed by hooped galvanised metal railings, with established trees at its boundary. A children's playground is located to the southeast and includes a monument to the installation of electric lighting in 1911. Bessbrook's War Memorial is centrally located to the southeast of the playground.