7 Nightingale Street

7 Nightingale Street is a terraced house, part of an important early group of industrial housing at Abercanaid built between 1852 and 1861, possibly by the Plymouth Iron Company to house workers at Abercanaid Pit and Pentrebach Forge.

The original development comprised seven terraces arranged in four rows facing east between the river and canal: one in River Row, two facing and two backing onto Nightingale Street, two in Canal Row, and then to the north three longer rows at right angles to the river and canal known as The Squares, a terrace of larger houses backing onto the canal, and two detached houses for higher-grade employees. All seven terraces survive, five of which are listed, though much altered since listing in 1975. The terraces to the north have all been demolished, though one detached house, Llwynyreos, survives.

Although small, the houses were relatively generous for the era, comparable to those at the nearby Triangle at Pentrebach (all demolished). They are double-fronted rather than the single-window-and-door type seen in earlier examples, such as the terrace from Rhydycar, now at St Fagans Museum, but were narrow with roof-spans of 4 to 5 metres and without rear outshuts, as they had roads or access paths both back and front. As built, the plan was arranged around a centre passageway and rear staircase. The facades are slightly offset to allow for larger kitchen chimneys, with the offset side alternated to create mirrored pairs. Gardens in front or behind were accessed across a footpath running down the terrace line.

The house is constructed of square rubble stone with a close-eaved slate roof and stone end stacks, is two storeys high, double-fronted with small-paned sash windows (two on each floor) and a centre door probably with an overlight. Stone voussoirs frame the openings on both floors, and stone sills are present. The rear wall is also of rubble stone, originally with one small door and pantry window below to one side and one small upper window.

No. 7 is an end-terrace house. It has been substantially altered: it now has 20th-century windows and a uPVC door with stuccoed thin surrounds, concrete roof tiles, and the rear wall facing Nightingale Street has been modified with a door converted to a window and widened to the left, a tiny upper window to the left, and no stack on the right end wall.

The house was not inspected.