Listed Building: 1 AND 2, ABBEY SQUARE (1376023)

CHESTER CITY (IM) SJ4066NW ABBEY SQUARE 595-1/1/7 (West side) 28/07/55 Nos.1 AND 2 (Formerly Listed as: ABBEY SQUARE (West side) Nos.1 AND 2-6 (Consecutive)) GV II* 2 town houses, now offices. 1821-2. At the expense of Prebendary JT Law. Flemish bond brown brick, with pale headers; grey slate roof. EXTERIOR: cellars and 3 storeys. Painted stone plinth. No.1 has entrance through Abbey Gateway, Northgate Street (qv), No.2 has 2 stone steps to door of 4 fielded panels above 2 flush panels with 6-pane overlight in a panelled timber case with fluted pilasters and a cornice hood. Windows are flush sashes of 12 panes to first and second storeys and 9 panes to third storey, having painted stone sills to first and third storeys and sillband to second storey, all with rusticated wedge lintels with false keystones. 3 first storey windows to No.1 and 2 to No.2; three windows to each upper storey of each house; moulded painted stone cornice, brick parapet and painted stone cornice; iron rainwater pipe between Nos 2 & 3. 2 visible chimneys. The rear looks across a narrow enclosed yard to the back of the buildings on the east side of Northgate Street. INTERIOR: the cellar to No.1 has front and rear walls of coursed sandstone, partitions of sandstone not toothed in and brick, quarry floors, replaced wood stair, some chamfered oak beams and 2-panel door. First-storey rooms have dado rails and some cornices, panelled embrasures and some 5-panel doors. Open-well closed-string stair, 3 turned balusters per step, newels and straight moulded rails. In the second storey the south front room has panelled embrasures with architraves and a simple fireplace. The altered north front room has embrasures as the southern room and parts of cornice. The dogleg stair to the third storey has open string, shaped brackets, stick balusters and simple swept rail. The third storey rooms have no visible features of special interest. The cellar of No.2 has peripheral walls of coursed sandstone, boarded door on gudgeons, 2 chamfered oak beams, replaced joists, timber steps and a boarded upper door. The first-storey front room has a 6-panel door, a dado rail, sub-panels and architraves to embrasure, picture rail and cornice. The back room has an altered door and blocked fireplace. A simple dogleg stair with turned newel, stick balusters and swept rail; shaped brackets to upper flights. The second storey has two 6-panel doors, sub-panels and architraves to embrasures, a round-arched fireplace in a simple surround; cornice. 5-panel doors to 2 rear rooms. The third storey has 5-panel doors; a fire surround in the north rear room. (Burne RVH: Chester Cathedral: London: 1958-). Listing NGR: SJ4049966503