Electric House
ELECTRIC HOUSE, UNION STREET
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1219127
- Date first listed:
- 03-May-1994
- List Entry Name:
- Electric House
- Statutory Address:
- ELECTRIC HOUSE, UNION STREET
Location
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Images of England Project
- Date:
- 2001-06-30
- Reference:
- IOE01/06271/28
- Rights:
- © Mr Ernie W. King. Source: Historic England Archive
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1219127
- Date first listed:
- 03-May-1994
- List Entry Name:
- Electric House
- Statutory Address 1:
- ELECTRIC HOUSE, UNION STREET
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- ELECTRIC HOUSE, UNION STREET
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- Torbay (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- SX 91343 64324
Details
TORQUAY
SX9164 UNION STREET 885-1/14/288 (North East side) Electric House
GV II
Electricity showrooms and office. 1935, drawings signed W Marsden, with a reference to PW Ladmore, Borough engineer and architects' offices. Sheradised metal windows by Percy Hope and Sons; electrically operated sunblinds and patent non-reflecting windows by Pollards. Building now used as Borough Council offices. Portland ashlar brought to course with polished granite plinth and dressings; roof concealed behind parapet; some original rainwater goods. PLAN: Sited in the corner between the hall of the twon hall complex and the rear of the former Carnegie public library. Ground floor contained showroom, now converted to offices. Separate entrance to left with stairs rising round a lift shaft to 2 upper storeys of offices. Art Deco style, designed to show off electricity. EXTERIOR: 3 storeys. Asymmetrical 1:3-window front to Union Street; the one-window section to the office entrance block which has a higher roof and sunk-moulded parapet with a cornice. The 3-window showroom block has a plain parapet with moulded cornice. Deep bronze-coloured projecting fascia above first floor with moulded bands, decorated with wavy lines. Showroom entrance has recessed door flanked by large windows with curved corners towards the entrance. Decorative panel above is filled with horizontal metal bands with a central roundel. Plain plate glass windows to either side of the show window. Above these, recessed panels contain "Electric House" in Art Deco letters. 3 first-floor recessed metal-frame windows with reeded panels between. 3 similar second-floor windows. Entrance block to left projects to the front. Art Deco granite architrave to office door to left. Original pair of well-detailed bronze and glass doors, fascia with Art Deco 'offices' lettering over, deep overlight with pattern of horizontal and vertical bands; two 2-light casements above. Electric clock projects from left-hand bay. The left return is in the same style 5:5:3 windows, the windows lighting the stairs diagonally-set. Some original Art Deco rainwater heads, original service door. INTERIOR: Many features survive. The office entrance hall is particularly fine, lined with polished Purbeck, flight of steps down flanked by semicircular half-columns encased at the bottom with back-lit frosted glass with applied metal wavy lines. Details elsewhere include hand rails, radiator grilles, doors etc Described in Pevsner as "a progressive period piece". (Buildings of England: Pevsner N and Cherry B: Devon: London: 1952-1989: P.858).
Listing NGR: SX9134364324
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 390869
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Sources
Books and journals
Pevsner, N, Cherry, B, The Buildings of England: Devon, (1989), 858
Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: South Devon, (1952), 858
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 30-Jun-2026 at 10:22:05.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
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