Reasons for Designation
Lock ups or blind houses are small buildings built as temporary prisons for
the incarceration of drunkards, vagrants and people disturbing the peace.
Generally stone built but occasionally wooden, they are square, round or
octagonal, containing either one cell or one for either sex. A small,
sometimes barred window was often included but the inside was always dim,
hence the term blind house. In some examples an iron cradle or wooden bench
survives, on which the prisoner slept. They were often built by the parish or
as a gift to the village or town by a wealthy resident and are generally
centrally placed.
Blind houses went out of use in the mid-19th century when they were made
redundant by the formation of a regular police force.
The lock up 20m south of Little London Cottage in the High Street is a well-
preserved example of a lock up which preserves original fittings in the form
of a wooden bench and a chain.
Details
The monument includes an 18th century lock up on the north side of Heytesbury
High Street. The village is situated below the south facing scarp of Salisbury
Plain to the south east of Warminster.
The lock up, which is a Listed Building Grade II, is set into the garden wall
of Little London Cottage, projecting partly into the garden and partly onto
the pavement. It is octagonal, 3.4m wide from face to face, and built of
ashlar limestone. The walls are 2.5m high and 0.5m thick and the roof is
conical, built of thick stone tiles surmounted by a ball finial. The doorway
is to the south, facing the street and the studded door is of oak. There is a
small barred square window above. Inside the building there is a wooden bench
with a chain attached.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
34209
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals
Legal
This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
End of official list entry
