Nos. 1 and 3 Victoria Place

Cadw's description

Location

Situated at corner of Victoria Place and Quay Street.

History

Part of a development at the entrance of the town by William Owen including the New Bridge and two terraces facing each other, now Nos 1 to 17 Victoria Place, completed in 1839. Part of the terrace, especially the eastern end, may date from before then. (See early C19 prints). The town improvements began as a result of a special Act of Parliament of 1835, but the terraces were named in commemoration of the accession of Queen Victoria in June 1837. The N terrace is plainer than that on the S which is of 19 bays with giant pilasters framing narrow alternate bays with arched doorways. Houses are mostly two-bay with narrow entrance bay to right, but No 1 differs, with canted corner to Quay St. No 7, Lloyds Bank, appears to have been two houses, much altered in 1893. No 9 was the centre with the date plaque 1839. Nos 15 and 17 are joined, No 17 with a chamfered corner and elevation to the river. No 1 was premises of Boots, chemists, No 3 was office of F.J. Warren JP, accountant, in 1926, a Ladies Club Room in 1884, and premises of Williams & Co in 1858-9 directories. Matching early C20 shop fronts all around, the one to right of centre door shown in a photograph of 1922, when the one to left, No 3, had a tripartite 4-12-4-pane sash window.

Exterior

End-terrace former pair of houses, now commercial premises, painted stucco, with slate mansard roofs behind parapet and red brick end and ridge stacks. Three storeys, three-bay main front with fourth bay to left canted on corner of Quay street and three bays to Quay Street. Giant pilasters frame narrow centre bay (former entrance bay of No 3) with simple stepped caps. Entablature over with deep frieze and simple cornice, broken forward over centre bay, blocking course over. A similar pilaster to left end is left side of framing of entrance bay to No 5. A broader giant pilasters without cap at right rises through frieze to cornice, which breaks forward over. Frieze reappears over canted bay, former entrance to No 1, and is repeated to right, on left end of Quay Street front. Windows are sashes with narrow marginal panes: narrower to the two entrance bays and longer on the first floor than above. Ground floor is altered as shop. The arched entry to No 3 survives with marginal glazing to radiating bar fanlight and modern half-glazed glazed door. Large square shop window each side, with marginal glazing bars to top lights and black marble below sills. Similar detail to entrance in canted bay, with recessed half-glazed door and shop windows canted in. Quay Street front has two similar C20 shop windows, the left one interrupting the bottom of the left pilaster that framed a former entrance bay. Upper floors are blank to left, between left pilaster and pair that frame narrow bay, which has square 6-pane sash over long narrow sash. Third bay has two 6-pane sashes to top floor, and one long sash to first floor left.

Interior

Ground floor altered.

Reason for designation

Included for its special architectural interest as part of a good classical stuccoed terrace, Nos 1-17 Victoria Place.