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Summary

Former police station in Italianate style, completed 1846, restored in 1978 and converted to dwellings. Two storeys and basement, two rooms wide and one room deep, with central entrance and rear centre projection.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1384894: BRIDEWELL HOUSE INCLUDING IRON RAILINGS

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SS91SE/43
• Old Listed Building Ref (II): 485353

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• POLICE STATION (XIX - 1844 AD to 1846 AD (Between))

Full description

Devon County Council, Untitled Source (Ground Photograph). SDV349040.

Other details: Film 368.

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

'Borough Police Station on site of St. Andrew's Chapel' shown.

Department of Environment, 1972, Tiverton, 40 (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV52494.

Borough police station, St Andrew's Street. Built in 1846 on site of an older Bridewell.

Devon County Council, 1975, Tiverton Town Trails, 66 (Article in Monograph). SDV352466.

Edginton, C., 1976, Tiverton's Industrial Archaeology, 27-29 (Monograph). SDV46908.

Built 1844-46. One of Tiverton's best surviving architectural features. Tiverton had its own police force until 1938.

Devon Committee for Rescue Archaeology, 1977, Old Police Station, Tiverton (Worksheet). SDV349042.

Demolition of an extensive range of 19th century cell blocks. The old gaol at the rear of the police station is incapable of beneficial use and will be demolished shortly. Other details: DCRA development file no.51.

Timms, S. C., 1982, Untitled Source (Personal Comment). SDV349038.

Police station was converted into residences by Devon Historic Buildings Trust in late 1970's when the prison buildings at rear were demolished.

Devon Historic Buildings Trust, 1992, Twenty Years of Progress. 1973 to 1993, 6 (Monograph). SDV346986.

The foundation stone of the Old Police Station and Prison was laid in 1844, and the building with its imposing front entrance was completed in 1846. Designed by local architect G. A. Boyce. Tiverton had its own police force until 1938, and the Chief Constable was also responsible for the adjacent Fire Station and Fire Brigade. Police Station converted into two dwelling units, and Fire Station converted to provide garages.

Exeter Archaeology, 2001, Archaeological Assessment of Land at Tumbling Fields, Tiverton, 5-6; figure 2 (Report - Assessment). SDV338875.

National Monuments Record, 2012, 518941 (National Monuments Record Database). SDV349041.

Former police station and prision. Other details: NBR SS91SE/38230, photos + architectural plans.

Ordnance Survey, 2012, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV348725.

Buildings now named Bridewell House.

English Heritage, 2012, National Heritage List for England (National Heritage List for England). SDV348729.

Police station, converted to flats. 1846, restored 1978 by the Devon Historic Buildings Trust. Local volcanic trap to the rear, mostly stuccoed; front elevation ashlar. Slate roof concealed behind parapet; end stacks with deep projecting cornices; cast-iron rainwater goods. Italianate style. Two rooms wide. One room deep with central entrance and rear centre projection.
Exterior: two storeys and basement. Symmetrical three-bay front with rusticated clasping pilasters to the first floor. Deep moulded eaves cornice on dentil brackets with parapet above. Platband at first-floor level. Centre bay broken forward and taller, also has rusticated pilasters with the eaves cornice broken out round them. Steps up to very tall, imposing, round-headed doorway with hollow-chamfered rusticated arch and keyblock. Two-leaf panelled door with sunk panels and fanlight with small panes and external grille. Granite blocks flank the steps up to the front door. Horizontal ribbon window above doorway has proud eaved architrave. Ground floor front windows are tripartite with square-section mullions and deep sills on brackets. Windows (all probably renewed) glazed with twelve-pane hornless sash in centre and four-pane in outer lights. First-floor windows have proud plain architraves and are glazed with twelve-pane sashes. Barred basement windows also glazed with twelve-pane sashes. End stacks behind ramped walls. Return walls are blind, except for basement door down steps on right return. The left return wall retains a painted pointing finger and sign 'Police Station'. Rear elevation ground floor not seen. First floor twelve-pane sashes with proud eared architraves and four-pane casements to rear of main block. Interior not accessible at time of survey.
Subsidiary Features: iron railings to basement area have diagonal standards and leaf finials. This is an impressive building with some unusual and boldly-executed architectural detail in the tradition of the earlier 18th century Ordnance Board.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

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