The Bear Inn

Cadw's description

Location

Situated on corner with King's Road, S of HSBC Bank.

History

Inn, first recorded in 1835 as premises of Daniel Williams chemist, owned by the Saunders-Davies estate. By 1840-1 had become the Bear Inn, taking name from elsewhere: No 13 Market Square had been the Old Bear in C18, and Castle Hotel had been the New Bear before c1800. There are 3 ranges; the older one possibly late C18 to early C19, with Venetian window, facing E, a slightly lower mid C19 SE corner block with canted angle and a C20 single storey range to W on King's Road.

Exterior

Inn, 3-bay original range facing E of 2 storeys with steep slate gabled roof and red brick chimney to left, shared roughcast stack to right, against end of No 12. Slight eaves brackets. Painted roughcast facade with long and short quoins, plinth and centre gable. First floor has unusual centre Palladin window with traceried coloured fanlight over centre sash with sidelights, flanked to left and right by 5-pane horned sashes. Ground floor has central panelled door with single 5-pane horned sash window to left aligned inward of window above, and pair of 5-pane horned sashes to right.
Lower range to corner has canted SE angle and hipped slate roof with flat eaves. E side has 12-pane horned sashes to both floors, canted corner has 4-panel door, and S elevation to King's Road has 12-pane sash over tripartite hornless sash of 4-12-4 panes (replacing C20 metal windows). Single storey left hand range has 2 doors to left and 2 windows, a 12-pane sash and a tripartite 4-12-4-pane sash to right (a remodelling of a C20 flat-roofed range with metal windows).

Interior

Interior modernised.

Reason for designation

Included as Georgian original building of unusual character with additions in broadly similar style, in prominent corner site.