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| HER Number | MWB15790 |
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| Record Type | Building |
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| Name | St Nicolas House, Newbury |
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Summary
Grade II* listed 18th century town house by the Kennet and Avon Canal
Associated Legal Designations or Protected Status
- Listed Building (II*) 1289887: ST NICOLAS HOUSE
- Conservation Area: Newbury Town Centre
Other Statuses and Cross-References
- 'Blue' Plaque Scheme
- Old Listed Building Ref (pre 1984) (II*): ø 1/187 St. Nicholas House
Mid C.18. 2 storeys. Grey brick with red brick dressings. Five sash windows with segmental brick architraves. Brick aprons to 1st floor window cills. Pilaster strips at corners. Moulded dentilled brick cornice and parapet. Good bracketted hood to front doorway, the consoles being ornamented with Cherub's heads; semi-circular fanlight.
Interior: Has contemporary staircase, and one or two reset, but original, late C.18 mantlepieces in Adam style. To West of this house adjoins a later (C.19) stucco wing of 2 storeys, with Doric porch on W. side and hipped Welsh slate roof and which now forms a separate dwelling.
Monument Type(s):
- TOWN HOUSE (18th - 19th century - 1701 AD to 1900 AD)
- PLAQUE (Early 21st century - 2010 AD? to 2020 AD?)
Full Description
Listing description:
Early-mid C18 town house, style of James Clarke of Newbury (master builder) with mid C18 (before 1768) extension at rear. Early C19 extra addition on south side and mid C19 range to west (No 4 qV). Early C18 stable range south of house was formerly separate, but is now incorporated with the outbuildings of No 3. Two storeys. Double-fronted with 5 windows. Tiled roof. Blue-grey bricks with red brick dressings. Pilaster strips on quoins carrying dentil brick cornice. Parapet with pilaster strips and blind, arched panels. Gauged, semi-elliptical arched, flush framed sash windows with exposed boxing, glazing bars and brick aprons to 1st floor windows. Good doorcase with open pedimented hood carried on consoles ornamented with cherubs' heads. Round-arched, architraved doorway with round-arched, radial fanlight and raised and fielded panel door. Mid C18 range at rear with ½-hipped tile roof, flush framed sash windows with glazing bars and mostly C19 openings to ground floor. Early C18 stables with hipped tile roof, timber framed and brick with cement finish, and 3 light mullioned casement windows to 1st floor. Interior of main house with mid C18 staircase with one twisted, one fluted and one plain baluster to each step. Two re-set, late C18 chimney pieces <1>.
St Nicolas House and the attached Chantry House were used in connection with Newbury's important breweries as a Brewer's House and Offices <3>. Despite its name, there does not appear to have been a direct link with the nearby parish church of St Nicolas, unlike the building on Toomer's Wharf formerly called The Old St Nicholas Rectory.
West Berkshire Museum has a photograph showing the front of the building in the late 20th century <6>.
In the early 21st century, Newbury Town Council erected a 'Blue' plaque on the building to commemorate the local brewing industry <7>.
Sources and further reading
| --- | Newbury Town Council. 2021. Newbury Town Trails: Public Art and Blue Plaque Map. 2021 WBC Network. Blue Plaque Trail 4. [Unpublished document / SWB150132]
https://visitnewbury.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Newbury-Blue-Plaque-and-Public-Art-Trail-Map-Digital.pdf (Accessed 13/02/2023) |
| <00> | 1950-83. Buildings included in the statutory list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest, pre Review. WBC Network. ø 1/187. [Unpublished document / SWB10875] |
| <01> | Department of the Environment. 1974-2000?. DOE List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. [Unpublished document / SWB10006] |
| <02> | Pevsner, N. 1966. The Buildings of England (Berkshire). P183. [Monograph / SWB10024] |
| <03> | The Borough Museum, Newbury. 1973. Newbury Buildings Past and Present. P48, Illust p62 and p4 The South Berks Brewery. [Monograph / SWB12937] |
| <04> | English Heritage. 2001. Buildings at Risk - The Register 2001. Product Code XH 20174. [Unpublished document / SWB12827] |
| <05> | Tyack, G, Bradley, S and Pevsner, N. 2010. The Buildings of England (Berkshire). p401. [Monograph / SWB147855] |
| <06> | Museum Curator. Newbury Museum Accession Records (West Berkshire Museum since 1998). 2022 WBC Network. NEBYM:2004.50.515.1. [Unpublished document / SWB14452] |
| <07> | 2016. Newbury Town Council. 'Blue' Plaques. [Website / SWB149145]
http://www.newbury.gov.uk (Accessed 03/01/2017) |
Related Monuments
| MWB18341 | 4 West Mills, Newbury (Building) |
| MWB17898 | Site of South Berks Brewery Malthouse, Kennet Road (Monument) |
| MWB19990 | Site of the West Mills Brewery, later the South Berks Brewery, Newbury (Monument) |
| MWB3451 | St Nicolas' Church - Newbury Parish Church (Building) |
Associated Excavations and Fieldwork
None recordedIf you have any comments or new information about this record, please email us.
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