The Round House

Reasons for Designation

Lock ups, also known as round houses, blind houses and clinks, are temporary holding places for offenders being brought before the magistrate. Sometimes a cell was located in or under a public building, but most lock ups were purpose built, usually small square, rectangular, octagonal or occasionally circular stone buildings. Most were windowless with one or two ventilation grilles, often set under the eaves or into the single door. The earliest recorded lock up dates from the 13th century, and most fell out of use when police stations with their own holding facilities were established. Less than 300 lock ups are currently recorded nationally, mostly grouped in clusters such as in Essex, West Yorkshire and Derbyshire, with the highest concentrations in Wiltshire and Somerset. In some counties, such as Hampshire, there are no recorded examples.

The lock-up at Castle Cary, known as the Round House, is a rare example of its class both in terms of its completely circular shape, being one of only four recorded circular lock-ups in Somerset, and its distinctive domed roof. It is very well maintained and provides a focal point for the town in its prominent position on Bailey Hill.

Details

The monument includes a post-medieval lock-up known as The Round House, situated on Bailey Hill, north west of the Market Place. Its site serves as a small roundabout in the centre of Castle Cary. The small, perfectly circular building, which is Listed Grade II, is constructed of Lias stone blocks raised on a slight plinth, approximately 3m in diameter, 2.5m high with a stone domed roof approximately 2m high and crowned with a stone ball finial. Entrance into the building is on the south side through a small studded door set above four uneven steps. The lock-up is windowless and has two ventilation grilles, one above the door and the other at the base of the dome on the north side. A narrow strip of cobbles around its base appears to be contemporary with the building. The round house was erected in 1779 and used as a temporary lock-up for prisoners. It was presented to the Parish Council by Sir Henry Hoare Bart JP in 1922. The three plant troughs located around the base of the lock-up are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath them is included.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 1 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

32182

Legacy System:

RSM

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.

Print the official list entry