 |
| Wilson's Court ca 1810 (Green Collection/NMNI) |
WILSON'S COURT, Belfast, runs from 29, High Street, to 24, Ann Street.
Could Wilson's Court have been named after one Samuel Wilson, a printer, who was based near the stone bridge at Bridge Street in 1733? Hugh Gaine (1726-1807) served his apprenticeship in 1740 under Messrs Wilson and Magee.
 |
| Wilson's Court ca 1830 (historic OS map) |
Today there is little of interest in the entry, apart from a hoist bay on the first floor of the Mermaid Inn.
This bay has sheeted doors and an eight-pane sash window above it.
Decades ago, when I worked in the city centre, I accompanied a colleague to the Mermaid for lunch and a drink during lunch-hour. I recall a cosy little pub, popular with office workers and punters who had been to the turf accountant's further along the entry.
 |
| Hoist bay and sash window (Timothy Ferres, 2024) |
Marcus Patton, OBE, in his Central Belfast: A Historical Gazetteer, thinks that these features might indicate one of Belfast's earliest surviving domestic buildings.
 |
| 1908 Street Directory (Timothy Ferres, 2024) |
The premises of the inn are thought to date from ca 1800.
 |
| High Street entrance to Wilson's Court in 1916 "Rainbow Hotel" etched on glass notice (Hogg Collection/NMNI). CLICK TO ENLARGE |
In 1860 the premises operated as the Rainbow Hotel and Tavern; Hugh Rafferty was the proprietor.
The first edition of the Northern Star was published at Wilson's Court in 1792.
No comments :
Post a Comment