York Historic Environment Record

The timber-framed building dates to 1397-1420, confirmed by dendrochronology, with a fragment of replacement roof likely to date to the 17th century. Although other interpretations are possible, the balance of evidence points to the building being constructed by one of the numerous medieval landlords that owned property in ‘Coneystreet’ such as the Ousebridgemasters' estate who rented out 20 tenements. Located to the rear of the property plot, the tenement is a rare surviving example of housing that would have been common in medieval York.


Terrace of three houses, with range of buildings attached to No.36, right angled to form rear yard; now shops, warehouse and language school. Late C18 terrace, extended in late C19 to incorporate early C17 and early C19 buildings at rear; late C19 shopfronts, altered in C20.

MATERIALS: street front of orange-buff brick in Flemish bond with sharply projecting dentil and modillion eaves cornice and cast-iron and timber shopfront; rear of red brick in Flemish bond with brick dentilled eaves cornice. Hipped slate roof with brick stacks. Late C19 extension of pink-grey brick in Flemish bond with brick dentilled eaves cornice, slate roofs, one hipped with scrolled corner brackets, and brick stacks. C17 building timber-framed, later encased in re-used orange-brown brick, Flemish bond at front, rear part stretcher bond, part English garden-wall bond; moulded modillion eaves cornice of timber at front, and pantile roofs. Early C19 house of orange brick in Flemish bond at front, with similar timber cornice, returned at left end; rear of Flemish garden-wall bond over lower courses of random bonded brick; hipped slate roof.

EXTERIOR: 4-storey 6-window front. Full width shopfront of elliptical arched windows on colonnettes with moulded capitals; fascia shaped to segmental arches by attenuated tulip foliage with tulip heads in spandrels; shallow cornice rises in centre over wide segmental pediment between heavy brackets ornamented with entwined tulip flowers and leaves. Panelled door with overlight beneath pediment leads to rear yard. Windows on first floor are 12-pane sashes over raised sill band; on second floor, unequal 9-pane sashes except for two altered at right end; on third floor, two original 6-pane sashes remain, the others altered. All windows have flat arches, with painted sills to those on second and third floors. Fluted bowl rainwater head on right return. Rear of front terrace 4 storeys, 2 windows, extended at right end into 2- and 3-storey 6-window range; yard closed by 3-storey early C17 bay and early C19 2-bay house front. Ground floor of front terrace obscured by later additions, except for round-arched passage opening. Extension has blocked central doorway in inserted doorcase with segment-headed arch on moulded corbels and cogged brick cornice hood: towards right end, window altered to plain door beneath cambered brick arch.

First floor windows are mostly 12-pane sashes, on second floor 4-pane sashes. C17 bay has altered door beneath tall staircase window with semicircular arch of rubbed brick and painted stone sill. Early C19 house incorporates passage arch with semicircular head to left of plain door with blocked overlight. First floor window is 16-pane sash, second floor squat 8-pane sash, both with narrow sills and flat arches of rubbed brick. Rear of C17 building is twin-gabled with altered openings and blocked original window with flat arch of brick in left gable.

INTERIOR: No.36: front rooms on first and second floors have fireplace surrounds of timber painted to resemble marble, one on second floor retaining cast-iron range and grate. Rear room on second floor has plain fireplace with hob grate. First floor front room has plaster anthemion and palmette frieze, coved cornice and sunk-panelled window shutters. Other rooms on first and second floors retain moulded cornices. Three fireplaces survive on third floor, one of cast-iron, one with remains of cast-iron grate and range.

Nos 38 and 40 have top-lit open-string staircases from first floor to attic, with tall column-on-vase balusters, slender moulded handrails ramped-up to detached turned newels. Cornices survive in most rooms on first and second floors. No.38: second floor front room has painted timber fireplace with fluted jambs and fluted dentil cornice shelf; rear room has cast-iron fireplace with floral moulded architrave in fluted surround, and pulvinated frieze enriched with rosettes and horizontal flutes.

No.40: first floor front room has painted timber fireplace with Corinthian pilaster jambs, plain shelf and late C19 basket grate. Second floor front room has plain fireplace with ornate basket grate, rear room painted fireplace in raised panelled surround with plain shelf and hob grate with cornucopias and medallions on sidepieces. On third floor, both rooms retain fireplaces with fluted friezes and cornice shelves, that in front room with basket grate with scrolled back plate.

C19 extension: open string staircase with heavy turned balusters and moulded handrail rises from first to second floor. On first floor rear room has plain pilastered fireplace with flat shelf and cornices to front and back rooms. Second floor front room has moulded cornice and round-arched fire grate, rear room stone fireplace with incised frieze and grooved keyblock, and round-headed grate.

C17 block: open string staircase from ground to first floor, with slender column-on-vase balusters, shaped tread ends and delicate ramped-up handrail with turned newel at the foot. On first and second floors framing survives with full height braced posts, wall plates, and some studding on second floor. In early C19 house main staircase with re-set column-on-vase balusters rises from ground to second floor. Fireplaces survive on first and second floors.

(City of York: RCHME: The Central Area: HMSO: 1981-: 124).
Listing NGR: SE6023451819

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

Range of three houses, Nos. 36, 38, 40, of four storeys, was built shortly before the rebuilding of the adjacent Black Swan in 1790. All three have modern shops on the ground floor. No. 38 has a normal town-house plan, with a spacious staircase between front and back rooms, and No. 40 appears to be similar but the upper floors are now shut off. No. 36 is of greater depth, making use of a light-well, and in the late 19th century was joined to a complex of earlier buildings behind; these include a three-storeyed timber-framed structure probably built in the early 17th century but later cased with brickwork, and two small three-storey brick houses, one of them mid 18th-century, the other a little later.

Monument 135; City of York: RCHME: The Central Area: HMSO: 1981-: 124

NMR Information
613515 Architectural Survey Investigation by RCHME/EH Architectural Survey

BF060512 36-40 CONEY STREET, YORK File of material relating to a site or building. This material has not yet been fully catalogued.

RCHME, 1981, City of York Volume V: The Central Area (Monograph). SYO65.

YAT, 1987-88, INTERIM 12, 12/1 p20 (Serial). SYO39.

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

FAS Heritage, 2022/2023, 36 Coney Street, York (Unpublished document). SYO2958.