1–11 and 13 Bath Street, Chester
Encyclopedia
1–11 and 13 Bath Street consists of a row of six attached cottages and a separate town house on the east side of Bath Street, Chester
, Cheshire
, England. Both the row of cottages and the house have been designated by English Heritage
as Grade II listed buildings.
and built on his own land in 1903.
with grey-green slate
roofs in two storeys. The frontage is asymmetrical and includes a variety of features, including two large plain gable
s with their upper storeys jettied
on corbel
s, two smaller dormer
s with shaped gables, and three round turret
s with conical roofs. The cottages containing dormers are set back from the rest, have bay window
s in the lower storey, and small forecourt
s with wrought iron
railings in front. Over the door of No. 11 is a cartouche
containing the date 1903. On the gables and on the summits of the turrets are finial
s. The chimneys and the rear of the cottages are constructed in brick.
No. 13 is at the south end of the street and has two storeys. It is built in red brick with panels containing stonework in the upper storey, and has Westmorland
green slate roofs. Its plan consists of a main square part with a wing to the north. On the front of the main part of the house are, from the left, a round turret with a conical roof containing a hipped
lucarne
and surmounted by a finial, a high shaped chimney, and an octagonal turret with an octagonal spire and finial. The upper storeys of the main part of the house and the octagonal turret are jettied on terracotta corbels. The wing contains the front door and a jettied dormer with a casement window
.
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England. Both the row of cottages and the house have been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as Grade II listed buildings.
History
The buildings were designed by the local architect John DouglasJohn Douglas (architect)
John Douglas was an English architect who designed about 500 buildings in Cheshire, North Wales, and northwest England, in particular in the estate of Eaton Hall. He was trained in Lancaster and practised throughout his career from an office in Chester, Cheshire...
and built on his own land in 1903.
Architecture
Nos. 1–11 stand at the north end of Bath Street. They are built in buff sandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
with grey-green slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roofs in two storeys. The frontage is asymmetrical and includes a variety of features, including two large plain gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
s with their upper storeys jettied
Jettying
Jettying is a building technique used in medieval timber frame buildings in which an upper floor projects beyond the dimensions of the floor below. This has the advantage of increasing the available space in the building without obstructing the street...
on corbel
Corbel
In architecture a corbel is a piece of stone jutting out of a wall to carry any superincumbent weight. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger". The technique of corbelling, where rows of corbels deeply keyed inside a wall support a projecting wall or...
s, two smaller dormer
Dormer
A dormer is a structural element of a building that protrudes from the plane of a sloping roof surface. Dormers are used, either in original construction or as later additions, to create usable space in the roof of a building by adding headroom and usually also by enabling addition of windows.Often...
s with shaped gables, and three round turret
Turret
In architecture, a turret is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle. Turrets were used to provide a projecting defensive position allowing covering fire to the adjacent wall in the days of military fortification...
s with conical roofs. The cottages containing dormers are set back from the rest, have bay window
Bay window
A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room, either square or polygonal in plan. The angles most commonly used on the inside corners of the bay are 90, 135 and 150 degrees. Bay windows are often associated with Victorian architecture...
s in the lower storey, and small forecourt
Forecourt
In architecture a forecourt is an open area in front of a structure's entrance.In archaeology, forecourt is the name given to the area in front of certain types of chamber tomb...
s with wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
railings in front. Over the door of No. 11 is a cartouche
Cartouche (design)
A cartouche is an oval or oblong design with a slightly convex surface, typically edged with ornamental scrollwork. It is used to hold a painted or low relief design....
containing the date 1903. On the gables and on the summits of the turrets are finial
Finial
The finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed decoratively to emphasize the apex of a gable or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain rods...
s. The chimneys and the rear of the cottages are constructed in brick.
No. 13 is at the south end of the street and has two storeys. It is built in red brick with panels containing stonework in the upper storey, and has Westmorland
Westmorland
Westmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...
green slate roofs. Its plan consists of a main square part with a wing to the north. On the front of the main part of the house are, from the left, a round turret with a conical roof containing a hipped
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
lucarne
Lucarne
A lucarne is a small dormer window that is built on a spire or roof during the Gothic and Romanesque time period....
and surmounted by a finial, a high shaped chimney, and an octagonal turret with an octagonal spire and finial. The upper storeys of the main part of the house and the octagonal turret are jettied on terracotta corbels. The wing contains the front door and a jettied dormer with a casement window
Casement window
A casement window is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a...
.