Building record 10558/2 - Chester Rows : 26 Bridge Street Row

No 26 Bridge Street Row is a late 18th century three storey town house, currently in use as a shop. In around 1900 the undercroft and Row level of the town house were converted into a public house that significantly altered their structure. The Row level shop front is a modern replacement of the early 18th century original with a door to the south and a multi pane window to the north. Heavy cornice over the Row was designed to be in keeping with the adjacent Dutch Houses. At first floor level the four light metal casement window is of 20th century date with a similar, albeit smaller, window on the second floor. The front facade has heavy moulded timber cornicing, again in keeping with the adjacent property. The interior of the Row level house dates to the 1900 public house while the upper floors contain some 19th or early 20th century features but in the main are mostly clad. A pair of late 18th century panelled doors are noted in the third 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.