Description

SJ4066NW
595-1/1/215
28/07/55

CHESTER CITY (IM)
KING STREET
(South side)

Nos.1-6 (consec) Kings Buildings
(Formerly Listed as:
KING STREET
(South side)
Nos 1,3 & 6 King's Buildings & Nos
2, 4 & 5 King's Buildings)

II*

GV

Terrace of 6 town houses, now houses, offices and flats. Dated
1775. Brown brick in Flemish bond to front and west end and in
English garden wall bond to east end and rear; roof of grey
slates, in diminishing courses to front with very large slates
at eaves.
EXTERIOR: cellars and 3 storeys. Painted stone plinth with
moulded cap. Stone steps to doors in pedimented cases: Nos 1 &
2 have 6 fielded panels, Nos 4 & 6 have 6 octagonal fielded
panels, Nos 3 & 5 have 4 fielded panels above 2 flush panels.
Roman Doric doorcases of stone, that to No.1 containing a
fanlight with a vase-shaped pane above 2 semicircles, that to
No.2 a 2-pane overlight, to No.3 a radial-bar fanlight and a
3-pane sidelight, to No.4 a radial-bar fanlight and 2-pane
sidelights, to No.5 a radial-bar fanlight and 4-pane
sidelights and to No.6 a narrower doorcase with fluted
pilasters and a looped radial-bar fanlight. The first and
second storeys have 12-pane sashes, flush to Nos 1, 2, 5 & 6
and recessed to Nos 3 & 4: three sashes to the first storey of
No.1, two to west of door to each of Nos 2, 3, 4 & 5 and
double-fronted to No.6. Three sashes to the second storey of
each house: No.1 has a replaced casement between two 12-pane
sashes in the third storey; the other houses have three 9-pane
sashes. All houses have painted stone sills; Nos 1, 5 & 6 have
a second storey floor-band; Nos 1, 2 & 3 have rusticated wedge
lintels with dropped keystones, Nos 4 & 6 flush wedge lintels
and No.5 painted gauged brick flat arches. Modillion cornices,
with slight variation between houses, stepping down between
Nos 2 & 3 and Nos 4 & 5.
The west end has a canted brick bay with cellar opening, 3
flush 4-pane sashes to the first storey, 3 wrought-iron
balconies to the second storey with French windows of 4, 3 and
6 panes, flush 9-pane sashes to the third storey, one with
glazing bars removed; painted stone sills and wedge lintels;
the brickwork behind the canted bay is largely renewed. The
east end is plain.

The rear has no concerted design, but individual features of
interest. No.1 has a replaced door, a 20-pane flush sash and a
replaced 12-pane window to the first storey, a Venetian window
of 4;12;4 panes and fan to the first landing, 2 flush 12-pane
sashes to the second storey and to the third storey; the
return of No.2 has a 12-pane sash to the first storey and an
8-pane sash to each upper storey.
No.2 has a full-width rear gable with a single-storey brick
bow having a pair of 6-pane French windows with an 8-pane
overlight, a pair of flush 8-pane sashes in a camber-arched
opening and a 2-panel door with 3-pane overlight under a
cambered head to the first storey; 2 flush 12-pane sashes to
each upper storey.
No.3 has a 2-panel door, a flush Venetian window of 8;12;8
panes and fan to first and second storeys and of 4;12;4 panes
and fan to the first landing, a flush 12-pane sash to the
second landing, a 4;12;4 pane tripartite sash to the third
storey and a 9-pane sash to the attic. No.5 has, in the rear
of the main block, a 5;10;5 panes tripartite sash to the first
storey, one of 4;12;4 panes to the second storey and a flush
12-pane sash to the third storey.
No.6 has a 6-panel door and dual 12-pane flush sashes to the
first storey, a flush Venetian window of 4;12;4 panes and fan
to the first landing, flush sashes of 12 and 4 panes to the
second storey and replaced windows to the third storey.
INTERIORS: comprehensive internal inspection was not possible.
Features viewed include: No.1 is an office. The hall has an
archway to the stair, with pilasters. The west front room has
a 6-panel door, painted panelled dado, panelled wooden
fire-surround with moulded mantel, window shutters and ceiling
cornice; the east front room, stripped of other features, has
a 6-panel door and window shutters; the west back room,
otherwise stripped, has a chamfered cross-beam; the east back
room is sub-divided. The open-string stair has a narrow open
well, patterned brackets, curtail, 3 slender turned balusters
per step, turned newels, swept rail probably of oak and
painted, swept dado; the Venetian window to the first
half-landing has columns, pilasters and entablatures to its
sidelights. In the second storey the west front room has a
6-panel door, painted panelled dado, window shutters,
cast-iron grate in marble fireplace and ceiling cornice; the
east front room has a 6-panel door from side of landing and a
probably inserted 2-panel door from front of landing, panelled
dado, window shutters and ceiling cornice; the west back room
has a 6-panel door, but all internal features stripped; two
6-panel doors to lavatories. The stair to the third storey is
partly covered, but has a plain newel and some turned
balusters and moulded rail exposed. The third storey rooms

have 4-panel doors. The closed-string attic stair has a turned
newel and 2 stick balusters per step. The attic has a roughly
finished square purlin.
No.2 is flats; only the first storey and the stair could be
inspected. The east and west front rooms have doors of 6
fielded panels and ceiling cornices and the main back room has
a door of 6 fielded panels, window shutters and a ceiling
cornice. The open-string stair has a narrow open well,
patterned brackets, a double curtail, 3 turned balusters per
step, swept rails and swept panelled dado, probably all of
mahogany. The stair to the third storey, with square newels,
stick balusters and swept dado, is probably remade.
No.3 is flats; only hall, stair and second storey were
inspected. The hall has a wide doorway to the stair; the door
is glazed above paired panels, with margined overlights and
side-panels; between door and stair is a pilastered basket
archway. The open-string stair has a narrow open well,
patterned brackets, curtail, plinthed fluted newels, 3
plinthed square balusters per step, swept handrail and
panelled swept dado; the stair, 3 flights per storey,
continues with similar detail to the third storey. The fine
full-width, well restored front room, has skirting, dado,
broad pilastered fireplace with side-panels, large moulded
plaster panels with festoons and recessed corners, ceiling
cornice. The back room has a skirting, blocked fireplace,
panelled embrasure to Venetian window and ceiling cornice;
kitchen with cornice.
No.4, now flats, has a stair similar to those described, but
probably simpler; the rooms could not be inspected.
No.5 is offices. The rooms, some of which are sub-divided, are
stated to retain pre-conversion features; between hall and
stair a basket arch on pilasters; the open-well open-string
stair has patterned brackets, curtail, 3 plinthed square
balusters per step, some damaged, and fluted square newels; a
door of 5 fielded panels; upper doors are covered.
No.6, partly used as doctors' surgeries in 1990, has full
cellars of brick, that to the rear being barrel vaulted, with
stone steps. Hall with probably Edwardian pair of glazed inner
doors, tiled floor, doors of 6 fielded panels to front rooms
and rear west room, modillion cornice and round archway with
fluted pilasters to open-well open-string stair with patterned
brackets, curtail, 3 plinthed turned balusters per step,
turned newels, swept rail and swept panelled dado, all of oak.
The first storey front west room has skirting, panelled
embrasures and ceiling cornice; the front east room has
panelled embrasure and cornice; the rear rooms have no
features. The Venetian window to the first landing has
pilasters. The second storey has doors of 6 fielded panels;

the front west room has partitions, not affecting the
structure, probably original fireplace with mantel on consoles
and carved seashell on a shield, sub-panels and panelled
shutters to embrasures and modillion cornice; the back west
room, not inspected, is stated to be unaltered; the front east
room has a simple marble fireplace, panelled embrasure and
cornice. The stair to the third storey, not above the lower
stair, is similarly but more simply detailed. The third storey
has cornice to stair-well, 6 doors of 6 fielded panels, basket
archway with pilasters and double keystone to the front suite
and architraves to embrasures. Small loft with simple stair;
simple roof-structure with purlins.

Listing NGR: SJ 40260 66567

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17552215

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990: Updated version
• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Hampshire: Winchester and the North (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Lancashire: Manchester and the South-East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Yorkshire West Riding: Sheffield and the South (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Care and Repair