Building record 10551 - Chester Rows : 10 Bridge Street & 10 Bridge Street Row

No 10 Bridge Street consists of a two storey town house above an undercroft of a possible 17th century date. There is a 19th century warehouse to the rear. The street, undercroft, level consists of a modern shop window and interior with glass door to north, and facia board over. The Row level town house is two storeys with a low Row level frontage that is entirely blank and of panelled stucco. The joists of the upper storey and the timber frame are 17th century. The upper floor is of real and applied timber framing with a gable end above projecting slightly out from the building line. The bargeboards and finial are 17th century. The interior of the town house has been significantly altered, the shop front on the Row level is a void now incorporated into the undercroft below with modern clad offices to the rear and late 19th century staircase to the upper floor. The traditional arrangement on the Rows consisted of a single storey stone undercroft at street level and a Row level building over it. Above the undercroft, the Row level building was more often timber built and consisted of a 'Row' level storey incorporating the Row walkway or stallboard extending over the frontage of the undercroft (this allowed extra head room for the undercroft and additional space for traders on the stallboards). The Row walkway was approximately 4-6m in width and incorporated the path and the stallboards themselves. The Row level storey formed the medieval shop opening onto the Row walkway. Due to differences in ground level between the front and back of the plots, the undercroft is at street level at the front and the Row level storey at ground level to the rear. The Row building also often included at least one further storey above it that extended forward again over the Row walkway. The upper floors were private, domestic quarters. The Rows are believed to be of medieval origin, dating at least to the 13th century followed by a gradual evolution of built form over a period of perhaps 100 years to create the present elements of undercroft, Row walkway and Row building. Survival of the built form of the Rows varies considerably and different elements of a single building can vary enormously in date from the 13th century through to the 20th century.