Numbers 1-4 Including Area Railing and Gates on North and South and West Sides

Details

TIVERTON

SS9512 BRIDGE BUILDINGS, Tiverton
848-1/6/139 Nos.1-4 (Consecutive)
including area railing and gates on
north, south and west sides

GV II

Terrace of 4 houses in a detached range immediately south of
Heathcoat's factory, on the opposite side of the leat.
Probably built in the early-to-mid C19 (before 1841).
MATERIALS: solid, rendered walls. Slated roofs, that of the
main range hipped. Red brick chimneys on party and end walls
of main range. Chimney at west end (facing Leat Street) is
arranged as 3 free-standing shafts linked at the top, while
that at the east end (which differs from the rest in being
square) has a narrow recessed panel on each side creating a
similar effect.
All the chimneys have caps with projecting brick courses
forming entablatures; each has a set of uniform 6-sided pots,
6 on the end walls and 8 on the party walls, except that those
between Nos 1 & 2 and 2 & 3, have one louvred pot. Irregular
red brick chimneys on rear closet wings at Nos 1-3.
PLAN: single-fronted, double-depth, with rear closet wings of
varying size.
EXTERIOR: 3 storeys; closet wings, single-storey. 2-window
fronts with doorways to right of ground storeys. C20 flush
wooden doors with older cast-iron knockers; original fanlights
with radial glazing bars at Nos 1-3. Sash windows, 8-paned in
ground and third storeys, 6-paned in second storey. Moulded
board below the eaves, carried round on to blank wall at west
end.
Rear wall (visible from Leat Street and the factory forecourt)
is similar to the front, except that the windows are
segmental-headed and all have 8-paned sashes; between
Nos 3 & 4, in the second and third storeys, are 2 smaller
4-paned windows.
INTERIOR: not inspected.
SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: area railing at the front (west of the
terrace), along Leat Street, and adjoining the leat at the end
of the back gardens, is of cast-iron with fleurs-de-lys
finials to the uprights; pair of matching gates at north end
of Leat Street railing. A similar railing extends along the
west side of the road into the factory.
HISTORY: the terrace is shown as Heathcoat property in the
estate atlas of 1844 and was fully occupied at the time of the
1841 census. The tenants then were an overseer (silk and
cotton), a machinist, an iron founder and a 50-year old man of
independent means. The borough rate book for 1836 shows 3
Heathcoat houses of equal rateable value `over water', between
the factory and Rossiter's Mill. The latter lay immediately
south of the terrace, behind Nos 20-26 (even) West Exe North,
and it seems likely that the 3 houses were part of Bridge
Terrace.
One of the ratepayers, George Skinner, also appears in the
terrace in the 1841 census. Heathcoat may not have built the
terrace himself, since it lacks the cast-iron window sills
characteristic of his houses.
The wooden glazing bars in the windows and fanlights are an
important part of the design of this simple building.

Listing NGR: SS9521612665

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

485232

Legacy System:

LBS

End of official list entry

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