Exterior
The street numbering in Lower Row follows on consecutively from the numbering in Middle Row. Terrace of 2 and 3-storey early C19 ironworkers’ houses. Plan of outer bays and central 3-storey bay all projecting with recessed bays between. Thus from NE (left): Nos.14 and 15, centre bay Nos.20,21,21a and 22, end right bay Nos.27 and 28 all project, matching the terrace of houses in Middle Row on the opposite side of the street. Lean-tos at each end of terrace. Each house except the central range has a single window range and door; the central houses are in pairs, each pair share a 3-window range (centre windows blocked in each case) with outer doorways. Across all 3 terraces the plan is very nearly but not quite symmetrical. Built of roughly coursed stone rubble with shallow pitched hipped roofs of stone slates, separate hipped roof to the central range, chunky ridge stacks, mostly shared. Windows are horned sashes without glazing bars (except for museum at Nos.26 and 27), yellow brick sills. Boarded doors, mostly recessed, have a glazed panel. Openings have slightly cambered heads, some with iron lintels showing, with rough voussoirs and surrounds.
From NE (left): Nos.14 and 15 project, doors to left, 1 stack. Nos.16,17,18,19 are recessed, No.16 with door to left, Nos.17,18,19 with doors to right, 3 stacks. Nos.20,21,21a,22 form the 3-storey central block, 2 stacks. Nos.23,24,25,26 are recessed, Nos.23 and 24 have doors to left, Nos.25 and 26 have doors to right, 3 stacks. Nos.27 and 28 project, No.27 has door to right, No.28 has door in brick lean-to giving a double fronted appearance to right end bay, 1 stack. Nos.26 and 27 have been converted to a museum re-creating the original appearance of these buildings: windows are iron-framed with small panes incorporating a top-hung casement; doors are fully boarded.
To rear, unlike the other terraces, Lower Row incorporates an extra lower storey accessed from a rear doorway at ground level, creating what was originally a separate cellar dwelling. The main houses are entered from higher doorways reached via a steep flight of shared steps of stone and brick incorporating a store beneath. Many later extensions.