10 Gun Street

Summary

Townhouse of about 1700. In commercial use on the ground floor by the 1840s.

Reasons for Designation

10 Gun Street is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* as a townhouse of about 1700 which contributes to Reading’s rich and varied architectural character and is believed to retain a quantity of historic joinery.

Historic interest:

* as part of the urban development of Reading’s ancient core.

Group value:

* the building is in close proximity to a number of listed buildings and contributes to a strong historic streetscape.

History

10 Gun Street, dating to around 1700, is presumed to have been built as a townhouse. By 1849 it was in commercial use as the premises of a saddler and appears to have continued in this use into the early C20. By the 1970s, the building was in institutional use and remained so until around 2010.

Sometime between the 1930s and 1957 outbuildings and extensions to the rear were demolished and replaced with a new extension, subsequently also demolished.

The crossroads formed by the north-south route of St Mary’s Butts/Bridge Street and the east-west route of Gun Street/Castle Street is believed to be the centre of the original Saxon settlement at Reading, established sometime before the ninth century. St Mary’s Church, which lies on the north-east corner of the crossroads was the town’s primary church until the establishment of Reading Abbey in the C12 and became so again following the dissolution in the late 1530s.

Running east from the crossroads, Gun Street forms part of the ancient route through the town between London and the West Country, and the street historically contained many inns and guesthouses. The street is first labelled under its current name on Charles Coates’ map of 1802. The name derives from the gunsmiths who are known to have been operating in Reading from at least the early C17. Most earlier buildings were gradually replaced during the C18 and C19 with townhouses constructed of silver-grey and red brick, following the local vernacular. Many were converted to commercial uses on the ground floors during the C19 or C20.

Details

Townhouse, about 1700. In commercial use on the ground floor by the 1840s.

MATERIALS: the principal elevation is of brick laid in Flemish bond with silver grey headers and red stretchers. Shopfronts, windows, door and doorcase are timber. The roof is covered in plain tiles. The rear elevation is partly cement-rendered and partly of exposed red brickwork.

PLAN: the building is three storeys high, plus basement. It is four bays wide with a pitched, gable-ended roof running parallel to Gun Street. To the rear is a projecting stair tower, offset from the centre of the elevation to the west, and a truncated stack along the west party wall.

EXTERIOR: the building’s entrance is off-centre to the east; the doorcase has fielded pilasters with moulded corbel brackets supporting an open pediment hood. The half-glazed door is later. To the west is an altered C19 projecting shop window, square in plan, with glazing bars to the window and a brick base. The window is flanked by short stretches of low cast-iron railings with spearhead finials.

To the east is a smaller C19 shop window, flush to the elevation. It has mullions and a transom with a narrow fascia and cornice above. The window is enclosed by cast-iron railings with spearhead finials.

The first and second floors are arranged with a two-two rhythm. The windows are two-over-two sashes with exposed boxes and flat gauged brick arches. There is a stucco plat band above the first floor and a timber or stucco eaves cornice.

To the rear, there is an irregular arrangement of windows. The stair tower rises to the attic level and has a flat roof.

INTERIOR: it is understood that there is dado panelling with bolection mouldings and an open-well staircase of the late C17 or early C18. The stair has turned balusters, closed string, square newels and moulded handrail.

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

38967

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Other
Thames Valley Archaeological Services. 2010. Rear of 10-11 Gun Street, Reading, Berkshire - Archaeological Evaluation. Held by Berkshire Archaeology Historic Environment Record
Reading Mercury, 20 October 1849, p3.

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.

Print the official list entry