Remains Of The College Of Jesus Now Encased Within No 23 College Street And Nos 2, 2A, 4, 6 And 8 Effingham Street

SK4292 ROTHERHAM COLLEGE STREET (north-east side) 9/34 Remains of the College of Jesus now encased within No 23 College Street 20.1.78 and Nos 2,2A, 4, 6 and 8 Effingham Street (formerly listed as Effingham Street, No 4 (The Old College Inn) and No 6) - II Walls of part of the College of Jesus. Founded 1482 by Archbishop Thomas Rotherham; repeatedly altered before being incoporated into present structure dated 1930 and by Flockton of Sheffield; re-exposed during internal remodelling in 1984 but now encased. Three 2-storey walls enclose the rectangle occupied by No 23, College Street, roadside wall of 1930. Premises fronting Effingham Street occupy a wedge-shaped addition with their rear walls formed by the C15 fabric. 3rd storey of later date covers C15 site. Present roadside elevations not of special interest. No C15 fabric exposed at time of resurvey. 1984 survey notes made by the County Archaeology Service show that the three walls retain large areas of original brickwork with numerous door openings with brick arches and moulded window openings. Although once regarded as lost (Wight) the survey demonstrated the extent of survival of this important structure. In 1474 Thomas Rotherham, a noted builder in brick, had shared the Chancellorship of England with Alcock who in 1496 built Jesus College, Cambridge perhaps inspired by the College of Jesus at Rotherham. Described by Leland as'sumptuously builded of brik', the college fell under the suppression of chantries in 1547-48 and was in decay by 1591. The building survived as a mansion before becoming an inn, the associated buildings being finally destroyed when Effingham Street was laid out c1880. Although a fragmentary survival, the walls of the College of Jesus are the earliest surviving brick structure in South Yorkshire and formed part of a fundamental element in the development of Rotherham. C17 doorway from college buildings now re-erected in Boston Park (q.v.). Notes and photographs in County Ancient Monuments and Sites Record, Sheffield, primary index No 189. J. A. Wight, Brick Building in England from the Middle Ages to 1550, 1972, pp136-153.

Listing NGR: SK4293292941