Details
SNAITH AND COWICK PONTEFRACT ROAD
SE 62 SW
(south side, off)
2/78 Snaith Hall
(formerly listed as The
23.4.52
Hall)
GV II
Small country house. c1829 for William Shearburn; later C19 extension,
verandah and conservatory. Magnesian limestone ashlar with Westmorland
slate roof; extension in stuccoed brick, incised in imitation of ashlar,
with ashlar dressings and slate roof; cast-iron verandah with glass and
corrugated iron roof. Neo-Classical style. Plan: double-depth, with 2-room
central entrance-hall principal north front, large central stairhall, and 2-
room central entrance-hall south garden front; single-room extension to
east. Conservatory (qv) adjoins south-east corner. North front: 2 and 3
storeys with basement, 3 bays; symmetrical. Central pedimented 3-storey bay
breaks forward with projecting porch flanked by 2-storey side bays.
Chamfered plinth, angle pilasters. Flight of 3 stone steps to moulded
plinth carrying Doric porch with pairs of columns flanking entrance, single
columns to sides and pilasters flanking door; plain entablature with
mutules, moulded cornice and flat hood. Half-glazed double doors (each with
6 panes above single panels) and 4-pane overlight in wooden architrave and
reveal with keyed ashlar architrave. Side bays have single basement sashes
with glazing bars, 12-pane ground-floor sashes with keyed lintels and sills
with recessed panels below. Moulded first-floor string course. Smaller
first-floor 12-pane sashes beneath wedge lintels. Central bay has small
ground- and first-floor casements to left return, and 12-pane sash to second
storey beneath pediment. Boldly-moulded cornice to side bays. Double-span
hipped roof. Pairs of large lateral stacks to east and west elevations have
moulded string courses, modillioned cornices and blocking courses; single-
flue stacks with similar cornices flank the central pediment. South garden
front: 2 storeys, 5 bays. Chamfered plinth, angle pilasters. Steps to
glazed door with sidelight and overlight in plain reveal, flanked by plate-
glass sashes in reveals with keyed lintels, sills and recessed panels below.
Full-length verandah to ground floor has Minton tiled floor, 6 cast-iron
octagonal columns with plain moulded bases and capitals supporting a tented
roof with cast-iron guttering and some glazed panels. First-floor moulded
string course, 12-pane sashes and cornice similar to north front. Large
central stack with recessed panels and cornice. West elevation has ground-
floor bay window with plinth, moulded sill, 3-light sash to front and
single-lights to sides in wooden architraves; single first-floor window.
East elevation has partly-projecting lateral stacks, and 2-storey extension
in matching style with basement door to north, ground-floor door to east,
sashes with glazing bars, ashlar frieze and eaves cornice, pediment and
half-conical roof. Interior. Entrance hall has flagged floor and Doric
screen to stairhall with pair of columns and pilasters with egg-and-dart
capitals carrying plain entablature continued as frieze. Fine stairhall has
open well cantilevered stone staircase with wreathed handrail, tapered
column balusters with bold capitals, clustered newel and moulded dado rail;
upper hall, rising to second storey, has round-headed niche to south flanked
Continued .....
Snaith Hall Continued .....
by pair of internal windows containing good marble busts of Shearburn and
his wife dated to 1846, balustraded landing, and Doric screens to east and
west with pairs of square columns carrying entablature with boldly-
projecting cornice; top stage has pairs of pilasters flanking east and west
windows, entablature and boldly-moulded ceiling rose. Moulded cornice and
mid-late C19 Gothic-style oak fireplace to garden entrance hall; original
leaf-and-dart cornice and twin-pilastered marble chimney-piece to south-west
room; moulded cornice, pilastered marble chimney-piece and ornate later C19
frieze to south-east room; cornices, plain stone and marble chimney-pieces
to other main rooms: first-floor south-east room has early C19 Adam-style
chimney-piece with ornate composition ornament. Secondary staircase with
closed string, ramped moulded handrail, plain balusters and column newel.
Basement incorporates vaulted cellars. William Shearburn (1792-1846) was a
prominent local attorney. A good example of local Neo-Classical
architecture, partly disused at time of resurvey.
Listing NGR: SE6413821933