York Historic Environment Record

Town house. Dated 1783; ground floor restored 1946-47. Front of orange-red brick in Flemish bond with stone bands, on stone basement; doorcases, and dentil and modillion eaves cornice of timber. Brick stacks to hipped roof of slate. Town house plan, incorporating service passage.

EXTERIOR: basement and three storeys; 3-window front. At each end is a doorcase with panelled pilaster jambs, moulded frieze and dentilled cornice on volute consoles, the left one with wheatear drop below: doors of six raised and fielded panels beneath patterned fanlights recessed in round-arched milled architraves. Doorcase entablature continues across ground floor as plain band above C20 replica Venetian window with small pane glazing. First and second floor windows are 12-pane sashes with flat arches of gauged brick, over sill band on first floor, and with stone sills on second floor. Raised first floor band. At right end of eaves cornice, inverted bell shaped rainwater head over fallpipe with fleurs-de-lys clamps. Rear: segmental arches to first and second floor windows. Brick dentil eaves band. Dated rainwater head with initials WA.

INTERIOR: ground floor: stone-flagged entrance and service passages. Two round arches on sunk panelled pilasters and reveals with milled necking and moulded imposts separate entrance passage from stairhall. Reconstructed staircase rises from ground to second floor, having cut string, slender turned balusters, two to a tread, and moulded handrail, ramped-up and wreathed at foot around column newel on shaped curtail step. Inserted elliptical arch leads to front room, which has enriched modillion cornice, and original fireplace with sunk panel jambs and moulded dentil cornice shelf, enriched with milling, frieze moulded with festoons and arabesques, and cast-iron grate. Rear room has two inserted elliptical arches and dentilled cornice. First floor: front room has moulded skirting, dado rail with milled enrichment, and enriched moulded cornice. Doors and windows have moulded and milled decoration to their architraves, and window reveals have sunk panels with composition foliar decoration. Fireplace has fluted pilaster jambs, milled architrave, frieze moulded with garlands and figures in applied composition, and milled and moulded cornice shelf. In rear room is fireplace with sunk pilaster jambs enriched with lion mask and pendant mouldings, possibly of applied composition, beaded and fluted frieze and moulded cornice shelf. Second floor: stairwell has dentilled cornice beneath coved ceiling and top light. Plain continuous round arches lead to front and back rooms.
(City of York: RCHME: South-west of the Ouse: HMSO: 1972-: 78). Listing NGR: SE5994651615

Derived from English Heritage LB download dated: 22/08/2005

House, Nos. 57-59, has a lead rainwater head to the rear elevation bearing the date 1783, agreeing with the stylistic appearance. The house was occupied at the end of the century by Robert Swann the banker, who in 1801 moved to No. 128 (97); and later by Mrs. Susanna Wray (d. 1830 aged 83), widow of the Rev. Henry Wray of Newton Kyme (Borthwick Inst., Rate Books of St. Martin-cum-Gregory; Directories).

The street front is of three storeys and built in brick with stone bands and a wooden cornice at the eaves. The ground floor was reconstructed in 1946–7 (Report of York Civic Trust) but both original doorways remain: that to E. is the main entrance while the other originally gave access to a passage leading to the rear. At the back is a lead rainwater head with initials and date, W A 1783.

To the E. The main entrance opens into a through passage, giving access to front and back rooms and the staircase between them. There were formerly stairs leading down to the kitchen in the rear of the basement, with service to both ground-floor rooms from the head of these stairs. To the W. A second passage leads directly to the rear of the house. The front room has an original fireplace. The staircase has two slender turned balusters to each tread, shaped cheek pieces and a swept mahogany handrail.

The front saloon on the first floor is a typical room of the period, with moulded skirting, dado rail with milled enrichment, and a moulded and enriched cornice. The doors and windows have moulded and milled decoration to their architraves; the window reveals have sunk panels with foliated decoration in applied composition; in the W. Wall is a fireplace with applied composition decoration. There is also an original fireplace in one of the back rooms.

Derived from RCHME - 'Secular Buildings: Micklegate', in An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in City of York, Volume 3, South west (London, 1972), pp. 78. Monument 78

Information derived from the NMR
57-9 Micklegate. Houses built in 1783. It once housed the Co-operative Educational Centre. They are constructed of brick and have 3 storeys; 3 sash windows with flat brick arches; sill band at 1st storey with band below; moulded wood dentill and modillion eaves cornice. The ground storey has modern alterations but retains a good moulded pilaster doorcase at either side with carved frieze, fluted consoles, radial fanlight, and continuous cornice with modern Venetian window at the centre. There is a rainwater head at rear with initials W.A. and date 1783. The Interior features a good staircase, and original fireplaces in the front rooms at ground and 1st storeys, and in a rear bedroom at 1st storey, also good doorcases.

Full description (SE 59945162 - O.S 1/2500, 1962)

1. 5343 MICKLEGATE (south side) Nos 57 and 59 SE 5951 NE 15/324 14.6.54
Grade II*

1783. Brick; 3 storeys; 3 sash windows with flat brick arches; sill band at 1st storey with band below; moulded wood dentill and modillion eaves cornice. Ground storey with modern alterations but retaining a good moulded pilaster doorcase at either side with carved frieze, fluted consoles, radial fanlight, and continuous cornice with modern Venetian window at centre. Rainwater head at rear with initials W.A. and date 1783. Interior has good staircase, and original fireplaces in the front rooms at ground and 1st storeys, and in a rear bedroom at 1st storey, also good doorcases.
(RCHM Vol. III, Monument 68) (1)

Sources
1. List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interes DOE (HHR) City of York N Yorks June 1983. p. 202-203

613515 Architectural Survey Investigation by RCHME/EH Architectural Survey

BF060812 CO-OPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL CENTRE, YORK File of material relating to a site or building.

RCHME, 1972, RCHME City of York Volume III South-west of the Ouse (Monograph). SYO64.

NMR, 2019, NMR data (Digital archive). SYO2214.