Forge House

Cadw's description

Location

Approximately 150m SW of the Bell Hotel and set back from W side of a minor road between Glangrwyne and Gilwern.

History

A small farmhouse of late C17 or early C18, to which a new villa front was added in 1810 for the manager of Glangrwyne Forge. Stylistically the villa is influenced by John Nash, who had been active in the area (e.g. Glanwysg of c1790), and is said to have been built with materials discarded at the rebuilding of Cwrt-y-Gollen. A further wing was added by 1839 to create a garden front.

Exterior

Consisting of a single-storey front range with its entrance in a lean-to behind to R. The 2-storey farmhouse is behind to centre, with a later wing behind to L forming the garden front. The earlier house has a long single-storey projection forward on the R side (probably built as the coach house but now a garage). Pebble-dashed walls are painted cream. The front range has a hipped roof, the rear wings have gabled roofs. Three-bay front has eaves projecting on brackets, and round-headed hornless sash windows. A canted bay to centre has a central pedimented doorcase with panelled pilasters, and a half-lit door under an overlight with radial glazing. In the side walls are round-headed sash windows offset to the rear, with a basement door on the R side and a barred basement window on the L side. Set back from the R end wall is a lean-to entrance porch reached up stone steps. It has a doorway with a 3-pane overlight and a door of 2 vertical panels.

The older part of the house, to R of the lean-to porch, has 2 sash windows in the lower storey, with lately inserted windows to upper storey and attic. The steeply-pitched roof has a stack to L. In R gable end of old house is a lean-to, in front of which the former coach house has a blocked doorway under a keyed lintel, to R of which is a hornless sash window. The wing to the garden front is 2 storeys and 3 bays, the central bay under a gablet, and with replaced windows.

Interior

The earlier house is modernised internally. The front range has panelled doors and shutters.

Reason for designation

A good example of a late Georgian villa, of additional interest for its earlier origins and its association with early industrialisation in the district.