Monument record 10111 - Medieval Pentice Row (Watergate Street)

A medieval galleried row was established to the south of St Peters Church. The row contained the Pentice court on the first floor. The Row comprised at least seven shops at ground level in the mid 15th century when the rows were levelled to the foundations and rebuilt, and as many as nine in the early 16th century – four or which were on Watergate Street facing the High Cross and five on Northgate Street. This appears to have been an ancient arrangement with documentary references to shops abutting the church dating to as early as the 1230s. The Watergate pentice row was again rebuilt in the early 18th century with the timber framing replaced with brick and stone with sash windows, it survived until 1803 when it was removed to improve access to Watergate Street. (1)

<1> Lewis C.P & Thacker A.T. (eds), 2005, Victoria County History - A History of the County of Chester: Volume Vii, The City of Chester - The City of Chester, Culture, Buildings, Institutions (Book). SCH6522.

<2> Lawson, P H and J T Smith, 1958, The Rows of Chester: Two Interpretations, p28 (Article in Journal). SCH5750.