5 The Borough

Summary

Late-C18 house, ground floor now in use as a restaurant, altered in the mid- and late C20.

Reasons for Designation

5 The Borough, constructed in the late C18, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* as a late-C18 house with ground floor commercial premises, retaining architectural features including Venetian windows and moulded cornice.

Historic interest:

* constructed in the late C18, the building was erected in a period of expansion for Hinckley and is an important part of the town’s development.

Group value:

* the building possesses group value with other listed buildings on The Borough including number 3, which was constructed at the same time.

History

The market town of Hinckley was relatively small and rural in nature by the C17, with approximately 1,000 inhabitants recorded in 1640. The town has been dubbed the ‘home of the hosiery industry’ and it was this industry which saw the town’s rapid expansion, with a population of 4,500 by 1811 with 1,500 mechanical stocking frames installed. New streets were created and areas around Castle Street and The Borough developed, with former farm buildings adapted for industry or commerce and agricultural yards filled with cottages for workers. In the first half of the C19, the growth of Hinckley was stunted by the slowing of the development hosiery industry, and poverty in the town was severe. The arrival of the South Leicestershire Railway in 1862 allowed the stocking industry to continue to expand with steam-powered frames and large factories, and the corresponding prosperity allowed the town to expand significantly beyond its historic core.

The island area known as The Borough, also historically known as Round Hill, was under the ownership of the town itself and formed the civic centre of Hinckley for many years. It was the location of the town jail, schoolhouse, market house, guild hall and town hall. Number 5 The Borough is likely to have been constructed in the town’s period of expansion and prosperity in the late C18 and was erected as one development with neighbouring number 3, with a moulded cornice connecting the two. The first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1889 shows the building fronting The Borough to the west, with a large square attached range to the rear. By the 1903 map, this rear range had been rebuilt and is depicted as a long linear building running west to east and attached to number 5 at its north end, with an enclosed yard to the south. This rear range was further altered in the mid-C20, with the yard to the south retained. The ground floor of the house was converted into a restaurant at an unknown date. The restaurant’s frontage was altered in the mid-C20, with a new tiled exterior, this was likely installed during the 1930s. This frontage was again altered in the late C20, with the insertion of new glazing. The ground floor interior also saw a period of refurbishment at this time, with a suspended ceiling inserted to the main restaurant area.

Details

Late-C18 house, ground floor now in use as a restaurant, altered in the mid- and late C20.

MATERIALS: constructed of brick with render to the principal (west) façade. The building has a slate roof.

PLAN: the building’s principal elevation faces west. A late-C19 or early-C20 single-storey linear range is attached to the rear.

EXTERIOR: the building has a symmetrical composition and is across three bays and over three storeys. The central bay has a Venetian window on the two upper floors; both are blind. To either side is a sash window on each floor. The first-floor windows are late-C20 and are sash style with six panes over six. The second-floor windows are early-C20 two-over-two sashes.

The ground-floor restaurant frontage is tiled with a stepped cornice and dates to the mid-C20. The central, glazed double doors are flanked by further large glazing to either side dating to the late C20.

The rear of the building has a single-storey projecting range with tiled gable roof.

INTERIOR: the ground floor of the building is in use as a restaurant with the finishes largely dating to the late C20 including an inserted ceiling and fixed bench seating. The rear of the ground floor extends to the east with further dining space accessed via an arched opening and a small flight of stairs. The rear range has late-C20 finishes and modern ceiling joists. A series of C20 casements with crown glass panes line the south wall. To the south is a covered courtyard area, with further seating. The upper floors of the building have been converted into flats.

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

188153

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: Leicestershire and Rutland, (2003), 176

Other
Hinckley Town Centre Conservation Area Appraisal, Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council, February 2013. Accessed on 1 December 2022 at https://www.hinckley-bosworth.gov.uk/downloads/file/3244/appraisal-february_2013
Hinckley Past and Present, ‘The Buildings of Hinckley’, accessed 1 December 2022, available at: http://www.hinckleypastpresent.org/hinckleybuildings-descriptions.html

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