31 and 33 Dee Banks, Chester
Encyclopedia
31 and 33 Dee Banks is a pair of semi-detached
houses in Chester
, Cheshire
, England. The houses have been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II listed building. The historical importance of the houses, in addition to their listing, is that they were designed by the Chester architect John Douglas
, who lived in No. 33 for 20 years.
, Chester, about 1 miles (1.6 km) from the city centre, in an elevated position overlooking the River Dee, with views over meadow
land towards the city.
, for himself nearby in 1896. An oriel window
was added to the upper storey of No. 31 in about 1945.
. The building has six bays, three to each house. The central two bays project forwards and each is gable
d; there are smaller gables over the outer bays. In each angle outside the central bays is a timber-framed
porch and a small conservatory with a hipped roof
. The lower storey has sash window
s in both central and outer bays. Between the storeys is diapered brickwork. In the upper storey, No. 31 has a five-faced oriel window in its outer bay, while the corresponding window of No. 33 has a double-arched window. Above each porch is a triple-sash window. In each central bay is a pair of arched sash windows and over each of these is an inscribed circular panel. The inscription in the panel on No. 31 reads "JD" (for John Douglas), and that on No. 33 "V&A" (for Victoria
and Albert). Above the upper-storey windows in the outer bays is a small one-pane window and above the windows in the central bays is a pair of small arched windows. The roof is ridged. A pair of substantial brick chimneys rises from the centre of the building and another more slender chimney is at the lateral end of each ridge. The sandstone
garden walls and gate piers
are included in the listing.
Douglas' biographer, Edward Hubbard
, commented on the "quality of massiveness" of the houses in their "prominent site" above the river but notes that internally they were "quite modest in their scale and their fittings". He stated that originally on the garden walls were railings that consisted of widely spaced uprights with forked bases. Hubbard considered that the most characteristic features of Douglas on the houses are the timber-framed porches, the polychromic
brickwork, and the ribbed brick chimneystacks.
Semi-detached
Semi-detached housing consists of pairs of houses built side by side as units sharing a party wall and usually in such a way that each house's layout is a mirror image of its twin...
houses in Chester
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. The houses 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 a Grade II listed building. The historical importance of the houses, in addition to their listing, is that they were designed by the Chester architect John Douglas
John 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...
, who lived in No. 33 for 20 years.
Location
The houses stand on the east side of Dee Banks in Great BoughtonGreat Boughton
Great Boughton is a civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It includes the villages of Boughton Heath and Vicars Cross....
, Chester, about 1 miles (1.6 km) from the city centre, in an elevated position overlooking the River Dee, with views over meadow
Meadow
A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . The term is from Old English mædwe. In agriculture a meadow is grassland which is not grazed by domestic livestock but rather allowed to grow unchecked in order to make hay...
land towards the city.
History
The land on which the houses were constructed was owned by John Douglas; one of the houses (No. 33) was built for his own use and the other was probably an investment. From the time he moved to Chester in either 1855 or 1860, Douglas and his family lived in Abbey Square in the centre of the city, initially above his office at No. 6 and later next door at No. 4. Although the houses are dated 1869, the family did not move there until about 1876. Douglas' wife, Elizabeth, died in 1878, and Douglas continued to live with his family in 33 Dee Banks for a further 18 years until he built a large mansion, Walmoor HillWalmoor Hill
Walmoor Hill is a large house in an elevated position overlooking the River Dee on the west side of Dee Banks, Chester, Cheshire, England . It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building...
, for himself nearby in 1896. An oriel window
Oriel window
Oriel windows are a form of bay window commonly found in Gothic architecture, which project from the main wall of the building but do not reach to the ground. Corbels or brackets are often used to support this kind of window. They are seen in combination with the Tudor arch. This type of window was...
was added to the upper storey of No. 31 in about 1945.
Architecture
Other than the oriel window, the building is symmetrical and it has two storeys; each house is a mirror-image of the other. It is constructed in brown brick with diapering in blue brick and some stone dressings; the roof is of grey-green slateSlate
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...
. The building has six bays, three to each house. The central two bays project forwards and each is 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...
d; there are smaller gables over the outer bays. In each angle outside the central bays is a timber-framed
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
porch and a small conservatory with a hipped roof
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...
. The lower storey has sash window
Sash window
A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels or "sashes" that form a frame to hold panes of glass, which are often separated from other panes by narrow muntins...
s in both central and outer bays. Between the storeys is diapered brickwork. In the upper storey, No. 31 has a five-faced oriel window in its outer bay, while the corresponding window of No. 33 has a double-arched window. Above each porch is a triple-sash window. In each central bay is a pair of arched sash windows and over each of these is an inscribed circular panel. The inscription in the panel on No. 31 reads "JD" (for John Douglas), and that on No. 33 "V&A" (for Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
and Albert). Above the upper-storey windows in the outer bays is a small one-pane window and above the windows in the central bays is a pair of small arched windows. The roof is ridged. A pair of substantial brick chimneys rises from the centre of the building and another more slender chimney is at the lateral end of each ridge. The sandstone
Sandstone
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,...
garden walls and gate piers
Pier (architecture)
In architecture, a pier is an upright support for a superstructure, such as an arch or bridge. Sections of wall between openings function as piers. The simplest cross section of the pier is square, or rectangular, although other shapes are also common, such as the richly articulated piers of Donato...
are included in the listing.
Douglas' biographer, Edward Hubbard
Edward Hubbard
Edward Horton Hubbard was an English architectural historian who worked with Nikolaus Pevsner in compiling volumes of the Buildings of England...
, commented on the "quality of massiveness" of the houses in their "prominent site" above the river but notes that internally they were "quite modest in their scale and their fittings". He stated that originally on the garden walls were railings that consisted of widely spaced uprights with forked bases. Hubbard considered that the most characteristic features of Douglas on the houses are the timber-framed porches, the polychromic
Polychrome
Polychrome is one of the terms used to describe the use of multiple colors in one entity. It has also been defined as "The practice of decorating architectural elements, sculpture, etc., in a variety of colors." Polychromatic light is composed of a number of different wavelengths...
brickwork, and the ribbed brick chimneystacks.