11 Nightingale Street

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

The original development consisted of 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, and two in Canal Row. To the north were 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 original terraces survive, though five are listed (much altered even since listing in 1975) and two rear houses in Canal Row remain unlisted. The northern terraces have been demolished, though one of the detached houses, Llwynyreos, survives.

As built, these houses were double-fronted rather than the single-window-and-door type seen in earlier examples. Though small, they were relatively generous for their era, similar to those at the nearby Triangle in Pentrebach (now demolished). The houses were narrow with roof-spans of 4–5 metres and no rear outshuts, as they had roads or access paths on both front and rear. They were arranged around a centre passageway and rear staircase. The facades were slightly offset to accommodate larger kitchen chimneys, with the offset side alternated to create mirrored pairs. Front or rear gardens were accessed via a footpath running down the terrace line. Houses backing onto gardens (Nos 70–81 Nightingale Street) have generally been extended to the rear; others retain their original depth.

Originally constructed of square rubble stone with close-eaved slate roof and stone end stacks, each house is two-storeys and double-fronted with small-paned sash windows (two per floor) and a centre door probably with overlight. Stone voussoirs and stone sills articulate the openings. The rear walls originally had one small door and pantry window below to one side and one small upper window.

No. 11 has been considerably altered. It now features 20th-century windows with stuccoed thin surrounds, concrete tiles replacing the original slate, and a 20th-century door with overlight. The left chimney is missing. The rear wall to Nightingale Street retains a low door and tiny window to the left and an upper window to the right.