Former Preston Conservative Club

The former Preston Conservative Club is a building constructed between 1877 and 1878 by the architectural firm Garlick, Park & Sykes. It features a free neo-Elizabethan style and is built of red brick in Flemish bond, with sandstone dressings, some applied half-timbering, and pargetting, topped with a slate roof. The structure has a rectangular plan, with a front range that runs parallel to the street and a full-width back extension.

The building stands three storeys tall over cellars and presents a symmetrical facade with three unequal gabled bays, the center bay being narrower. The outer bays are emphasized by giant 4-centred arches that rise into the gables, featuring stepped chamfers above the ground floor. The central entrance bay is particularly striking, showcasing a large chamfered and moulded segmental-pointed archway with a hoodmould, leading to a deeply recessed doorway accessed by steps. Above the entrance, there is a stone arcaded balcony supported by large coupled brackets, along with a recessed mullion-and-transom window beneath pargetted coving. The second floor features a similar window that rises into a gablet with projecting verges.

The outer bays are adorned with full-width mullion-and-transom windows on each floor, all equipped with two transoms. The ground floor windows are recessed under pargetted coving, while the first-floor windows are canted oriels with pentice roofs. All windows include leaded stained glass in the upper lights. The basement areas are protected by cast-iron twisted railings with fleur-de-lys heads, which include two lamp-standards at the corners of the entrance. A foundation stone at the right-hand end of the basement was laid by Edward Hermon MP, who was the proprietor of Horrocks, Crewdson & Co, cotton manufacturers. The club was established by traditional leaders of Conservatism in Preston as a response to the rise of Conservative Working Men's clubs.