Town house incorporating remains of the Church of St Mary

Summary

Townhouse, mid-C19, incorporating part of the Church of St Mary, with later shopfronts and alterations.

Reasons for Designation

This townhouse of mid-C19 date is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* an attractive town centre building that makes the most of its prominent marketplace site by the inclusion of a curved corner;
* constructed of handmade brick with a Welsh slate roof, it retains its mid-C19 character with later well-detailed shopfronts;
* it incorporates important architectural elements of Hexham's C13 parish church, other upstanding parts of which are also listed.

Historic interest:

* one of the key buildings lining Hexham's historic marketplace, which form an important group of listed buildings, with the priory church of St Andrew forming the west side.

History

This building was constructed in the mid-C19 on the north side of Hexham's marketplace, and in part overlies the site of the north aisle of the former Church of St Mary. It may have originally had a ground floor shop, although the present shopfronts are later C19. A fire in 2000 gutted the interior, and reinstatement of fire damage included alterations to the roof structure, the basement layout and the removal of an internal chimney breast. An archaeological recording project identified the remains of the Church of St Mary within the cellar south wall. The medieval Church of St Mary was the parish church of Hexham in the Middle Ages. It was constructed in the C13 and was the successor of an earlier, Saxon church possibly on the same site, built by Bishop Wilfred. A reference in 1634 suggests that at that time the church was a roofless shell and it was probably abandoned after the Reformation in about 1540 when the adjacent former abbey church became available. After it fell into decay, parts of the church including the nave's north arcade, became incorporated into a number of houses lining the marketplace.

Details

Townhouse, C19 with later shopfronts and alterations.

MATERIALS: exposed brick with stone dressings; slate roof.

PLAN: curved and returned to Fore Street.

EXTERIOR: the building has three storeys plus a basement beneath a low-pitched slate roof. There are two first-floor windows to the Market Place, one window on the curve and one window to Fore Street. Windows have six-over-six unhorned sash windows with exposed frames and stone lintels; there is also a first- and second-floor sill band. The shopfront is later and has large plate glass windows and a glazed door on the curve. There is a pilastered doorcase to Fore Street with a rectangular light above the door and a simple entablature. There is a flat bay shop window on the right facing Market Place that is arched and has dog tooth labels and a recessed central entrance with cast iron gates in front.

INTERIOR: within the basement, the south wall of the building retains part of the north arcade of the C13 Church of St Mary, visible as heavy, squared stone and a lancet window.

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

239169

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Grundy, J, McCombie, G, Ryder, P, Welfare, H, The Buildings of England: Northumberland, (2002), 327-9

Other
Nos 11-13 Market Place: A Provisional Archaeological Assessment Nov 2000, Peter F Ryder
St Mary's Church, Hexham Part 1: Archaeology Recording at 11-13 Market Place, 2000- 2001. Photos to accompany Report, Peter F Ryder
St Mary's Church, Hexham. Part 1 Archaeological Recording at 11-13 Market Place, 2000-2001. Part 2 Other Remains of St Mary's Church, Peter F Ryder

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