Building record 10588/2 - Chester Rows : 53-55 Bridge Street Row

No 53-55 Bridge Street Row is a three storey town house of mid 19th century date. The present facade consists of a modern shop front at Row level replacing the original design. At first floor level there is an oversize 20th century oriel window of poor design replacing the original sash while at second floor level there is a pair of two pane sash windows. The interior is entirely modern. The Row walkway consists of a Row walk 2.07m wide and a stallboard 2.22m wide. The upper floors are supported on brick piers to the north and south with a central iron column and a plain iron railing to the front. 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.