31, BRIDGELAND STREET

Details

BIDEFORD

SS4526 BRIDGELAND STREET 842-1/5/47 (South side) 06/05/92 No.31

GV II*

Centre part of a large house, originally including Nos 30 and 32 (qv); now divided into shops, offices and flat. 1692, front remodelled early C19, minor C19 and C20 additions at rear. Solid rendered walls (probably of brick underneath). Slate roof. chimney on each side-wall: red brick to right, rendered to left. Double-fronted, double-depth plan: 2 rooms at front with central entrance passage to staircase compartment in centre of rear part. 3 storeys; 3-window range. Top storey is an early C19 heightening, concealing original garret (right-hand side of rear wall has not been heightened). Front is entirely early C19, with giant reeded pilaster-strip at left-hand end; a matching pilaster-strip has probably been removed at the right-hand end, since the eaves-cornice breaks forward at that point. Centre doorway with wooden doorcase; attached columns supporting entablature with modillioned cornice. Round-arched doorway with moulded archivolt springing from moulded imposts; panelled reveals. 6-panelled door, the 4 upper panels raised and fielded, the 2 lowest panels flush; rear plate of old knocker, the striker itself missing. Flanking the doorway a pair of projecting, mirrored shop fronts, probably late C19 or early C20. Each has a canted display window with shop door adjoining the house-door. Left-hand shop has panelled and fluted pilaster-strips at either side of shop-door and at left-hand end of display window with cornice across whole front; original half-glazed shop door; right-hand shop altered, but shop door still has 2 fluted pilaster-strips. Upper storeys have sash windows, the older ones with recessed box-frames; all have small panes, except for the lower sashes in the second storey. Outer second-storey windows have been enlarged (probably in early C19) and have 8-paned sashes. Other windows have 6-paned sashes. Moulded eaves-cornice. INTERIOR: has 3 ceilings with shaped panels formed by plaster bolection-mouldings. Entrance-passage has ceiling with oblong panels; moulded cornice. Several boarded-in doors with moulded architraves. Main staircase (rising to third storey) is a wooden dog-leg with heavily-moulded closed strings and square newels, heavy turned balusters (boarded in; between ground and second storeys) broad flat handrail sweeping up to the newels at the landings; oblong bolection-moulded panels on underside of the flights. At rear of second-storey landing an early C19 six-panelled door. Shop to left of ground storey has in front room raised-and-fielded, 1-fillet ovolo-moulded panelling (probably early C18) with box-cornice. Later doorway cut through rear wall. 6-panelled door (probably C18 or early C19) to entrance-passage. Display window has early C19 reeded surround with carved flower in top right-hand corner. 2 round-headed, semi-circular niches flanking chimneybreast to left. Rear room has moulded cornice. Right-hand shop has in front room a foliated cornice; early C19 6-panelled door to entrance-passage. Rear room not inspected. Second storey sub-divided by late C20 partitions, but original arrangement easily distinguishable. Right-hand front room has ceiling with shaped panels and coved foliated cornice; foliated boss in centre panel. Mid or lae C19 chimneypiece (now painted) to right; mantelshelf with carved brackets; Rear room has remains of moulded cornice. Back stairs plain, without balustrade. Left-hand front room has moulded cornice. Rear room has ceiling with shaped panels and box-cornice; in left side-wall a wooden chimneypiece (probably early C18) with panelled pilasters and entablature; to left of chimneybreast is an original cupboard with panelled bolection-moulded doors having shaped H-hinges; inside, old wooden coat-pegs. Third storey has 3 original 2-panelled, bolection-moulded doors leading to left-hand front room and middle and right-hand rear rooms. 2 early C18 doors with 6 raised-and-fielded panels; a third, plainer 6-panelled door to rear closet, possibly remodelled. Front right-hand room has, to left of chimneybreast, an early C18 round-headed cupboard with moulded architrave; double plank doors underneath with H-hinges. This was part of a larger Bideford Bridge Trust property originally comprising Nos 30-32. The first lease of 1692 was to Thomas Power of Bideford, merchant; the site was then 92ft wide with a little lane (now Queen Street) on the east. It appears to have been a U-shaped house; the remains of the rear wings now lie behind Nos 30 and 32 (qv). (Bideford Bridge Trust leases).

Listing NGR: SS4546026796

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

375759

Legacy System:

LBS

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