Ewenny Community Village Hall

Cadw's description

Location

Set on a bank above the main road between Ewenny and Corntown, a little W of Corntown village and nearly opposite Top Lodge, the former S entrance to Ewenny Priory House.

History

Inscription reads 'Erected and endowed by Elizabeth Margaret Turbervill 1866 '. Design possibly by John Prichard who produced plans for alterations to South Gatehouse at Ewenny Priory 1866. Built as village school, later converted to Village Hall.

Exterior

Plan of rectangular schoolroom with entrances to front and side and attached former schoolmaster's house wing to left. Of thin coursed rubble in buff and brown with ashlar dressings, moulded copings to gables, small Westmorland slates to high pitched hall roof with bellcote, ridge cresting and circular stem to chimney right corbelled from gable end. Eaves corbels, horizontal bands, battered plinth. Two flights of stone steps to large entrance archway left of 2 orders on inner and outer face with nailhead ornament, the mouldings dying back at impost level; narrow rubble voussoirs alternate with ashlar blocks; diagonal stepped buttresses. Within porch are two boarded doors with strapwork hinges under chamfered shouldered openings; Turbervill arms to inlaid porch floor of tiles and pebble panels; panelled wooden ceiling supported on corbels. Four cusped windows to centre of front with similar voussoirs, a colonette separating the central pair. Left gable end has cinquefoil oculus over similar second porch entry now blocked with a pair of pointed arched horned sash windows to left. The range continues breaking forward with a gabled dormer flanked by chimneys with circular stems, the left attached to a larger rectangular stack with stepped coping; pair of pointed arched sash windows to dormer; square headed hollow chamfered windows to ground floor. Similar windows to rear. Right gable end has shouldered doorway, 2 lancet windows, Turbervill Arms in quatrefoil to corbelled chimney. Rear outbuildings of stone and yellow brick with hipped small slate roofs.

Interior

Interior of schoolroom has boarded wagon roof with flying braces to angles, open trefoil panels to crenellated wall head beams; planked dado. Stone chimney piece in W wall has arched opening to flue and stepped hood on corbels. The front window range consists internally of a 6 bay arcade with ogee keeled shafts on shallow bases and ringed capitals with stiff leaf and billet moulding above. Some glazing renewed following fire damage but some original leading patterns survive in side wing.

Reason for designation

Included as a mainly unaltered school building of 1860s with fine detail and strong connections with the Turbervill family of Ewenny Priory (house); group value with Top Lodge.