Building record 10604 - Chester Rows: 37-41 Lower Bridge Street

No 37-41 Lower Bridge Street consists of a wide fronted three storey town house with half basement previously known as Park House. The facade is stucco with horizontal rustication to quoins. It was built in 1717 by Madam Elizabeth Booth following permission to enclose this part of the Row. The shop fronts to the half basement level, set 0.60m below the street level both have a modern shop front and interior with few features of note. The ground floor is accessed via a splayed staircase rising from street level to a central narrow doorway. The interior retains a few original features including some skirting boards. A large ballroom was added to the rear of the property in the late 18th century. The front facade is dominated by two columns supporting a porch with two large 8 pane sash windows to either side. The upper floors each have a facade of five evenly spaced sash windows. There are few internal features of note. 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.