Nos. 31-57 Myddelton Square, Clerkenwell, London

Summary

A terrace of 27 houses, some now flats, along the east and north sides of Myddelton Square, laid out 1824-1827 by William Chadwell Mylne, Surveyor to the New River Estate. Nos. 43-53 were rebuilt by the New River Company in 1947-48 following war damage.

Description

A terrace of 27 houses, some now flats, along the east and north sides of Myddelton Square, laid out 1824-1827 by William Chadwell Mylne, Surveyor to the New River Estate. Development of the square’s north side (Nos. 39-57) began in 1824-5, with Nos. 47-49 (by James Armsby and Thomas Sowter) and No. 50 (John Bringloe); followed by Nos. 40-46 (1827-9, Arsmby & Sowter); Nos. 51-57 (1829-30, Richard Chapman), finishing in 1831-2 with No. 39 (Armsby & Sowter). The north-eastern return (Nos. 31-38) began in 1827-9 with Nos. 34-38 (William Harris); Nos. 31-33 (James Mansfield) were built 1829-33. Nos. 43-53 constructed 1947-1948 following the destruction of the original in the Second World War, also for the New River Estate and probably overseen by Daniel Watney, Eiloart, Inman & Nunn.

MATERIALS: yellow stock brick set in Flemish bond with banded stucco ground-floor (except nos. 39-53) and stucco dressings. The roofs are obscured by parapets, but the party wall stacks are of brick.

PLAN: side-hall entrance plan, except to Nos. 43-53.

EXTERIOR: four storeys with basements, with two window bays to each dwelling. The right-hand return wall to No. 31 in Chadwell Street and left-hand return wall to No. 57 in Mylne Street have one-storey stucco portico entrances. Steps rise to irregularly spaced round or elliptical-arched entrances. The jambs of the doorways have 1/4 fluted columns (Nos. 31-32 & 39-42 have pilasters) carrying corniced-= heads with fanlights (Nos. 31-32, 36-40, 43-53, flats 1-30 patterned) and original panelled doors to Nos.32, 34, 36-39 and 54-55. The fenestration comprises ground-floor round and elliptical-arched sashes (some with margin lights) set in stucco recesses with panels below. There are gauged-brick, flat-arched, mostly six-over-six and three-over-three sashes to the upper floors (some French doors). On the first floor there is a stucco sill band beneath full-length sashes set in arched recesses linked by stucco impost bands and with iron-bracketed, coupled cast-iron balconies (except to Nos. 43-53 which are missing) with Vitruvian scroll and anthemion patterns to the railings. Some rebuilding has occurred to the upper floors; the plain brick parapet has a brick string course and stone coping.

Nos. 43-53 have extensive alterations to the fenestration including the changing of Nos. 47-49 & 51-52 doors to windows during the C20 rebuild; renumbering also took place. A plaque to the right of original No. 46 (now called flats 11-20 of 43-53) reads: '43-53 Myddelton Square destroyed by enemy action on 11th January 1941 Rebuilt 1947-1948 by The New River Company'. The rear elevation of these dwellings has projecting concrete and brick extensions and fenestration of 1947-8 and later and is not of special interest.

INTERIOR: not inspected. It is understood that the interiors of Nos. 43-53 date entirely to 1947-1948 and are not of special interest.

SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: attached there are cast-iron railings with urn finials.

History

Myddelton Square, the largest square in Clerkenwell, was built as part of the New River Company’s early-to-mid C19 development of its estate, which comprised land surrounding the New River Head waterworks accumulated over two centuries. Plans for a large square with a church as its focus were commenced in 1818 by William Chadwell Mylne, Surveyor to the NRC; building began in 1823 and was completed in 1836. The square, named after the NRC founder Sir Hugh Myddelton, originally consisted of 73 houses by thirteen different builders; two extra houses were inserted on the south side in 1842-3 on a gap between Nos. 11 and 12, left vacant for a road to Sadler’s Wells which was never realised.

Development of the square’s north side (Nos. 39-57) began in 1824-5, with Nos. 47-49 (James Armsby and Thomas Sowter) and No. 50 (John Bringloe); followed by Nos. 40-46 (1827-9, Arsmby & Sowter); Nos. 51-57 (1829-30, Richard Chapman), finishing in 1831-2 with No. 39 (Armsby & Sowter). The north-eastern return (Nos. 31-38) began in 1827-9 with Nos. 34-38 (William Harris); Nos. 31-33 (James Mansfield) were built 1829-33.

The houses in the square followed a cohesive design with varying details; all are built in stock brick, of four storeys above a basement and with two bay façades. Nos. 39-49 did not receive the horizontally channelled stucco finish to the ground floor present on the other houses in the square. The square’s north side suffered serious damage in an air-raid of 11 January 1941, which virtually destroyed Nos. 43-53. These houses were rebuilt by the New River Company as a series of flats in 1947-8, comprising (from east to west) two blocks of five units and two blocks of ten. The work was probably overseen by Daniel Watney, Eiloart, Inman & Nunn. They were given a uniform façade which followed the form of the original with certain exceptions: four instead of the original eleven entrances were reinstated (reflecting the new internal layout); the iron balconets to the first-floor windows were omitted, as were the stucco ground-floor finishes to Nos. 50-54. A number of other houses have been subsequently been converted into flats.

Reasons for Listing

Nos. 31-57 Myddleton Square, a terrace of 1824-7, with Nos. 43-53 rebuilt after the Second World War, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Architectural interest: a well-proportioned terrace forming the north and north-east sides of Myddleton Square, possessing fine stucco and cast-iron details;
* Historic Interest: a cohesive architectural language secured by the development of the Square by the New River Company, founded in 1622 by Sir Hugh Myddleton;
* Alteration: Nos. 43-53 were rebuilt in the same idiom by the New River Company in 1947-48 following war damage, an early example of post-war conservation-inspired reconstruction which maintains the architectural cohesion of the group and contributes further to its historic interest;
* Group Value: the terrace has a high degree of group value with the other terraces of the Square and with the Church of St Mark at its centre, all listed at Grade II, with which it forms an ensemble.

External Links

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