126 Main Street

Cadw's description

Location

On the N side of Main Street some 150m E of its E junction with East Back.

History

C19 front building heavily altered in C20, the Top of the Town fish-and-chip shop in 2004. Within are remains of a medieval house with vaulted room, behind the front building, one of the larger medieval ground floors left in the town. The significant distance back from the street front may indicate the wider medieval street, as shown on Speed's 1610 map.
An old photograph in the premises shows the facade when premises of WE Wignall & Co, tobacconists. It was then roughcast with three bays, two to left, one to right and 4-pane sashes to first floor and ground floor right. Door left of centre and shop window to left. Previously it had been the Red Lion inn, a Cawdor estate property, recorded as an inn in 1795 and closed in 1891.

Exterior

House now shop, painted roughcast with slate roof. Two storeys, three bays, much altered in C20. First floor plate glass sashes, one to centre and a pair each side. Ground floor left and centre right have two matching C20 shopfronts with door to left of shop-window. C20 house door to right. Right end has projecting added lean-to.

Interior

Two shops within. At the back of the W room are two segmental pointed stone medieval arches, one blocked, the other into a passage to a small stone vaulted room parallel to street. At back of E room are two medieval corbels in wall to right and a segmental pointed doorway to left.

Reason for designation

Included principally for the special interest of the medieval architectural remains within the later fabric.