Mechanics Institute

The Mechanics Institute, now a restaurant, was built in 1837. It features hammer-dressed stone and a Welsh blue-slate roof. The building has two storeys at the front and left-hand return, and three storeys at the right-hand return. The symmetrical facade has three bays, with a doorway that has monolithic jambs, consoles, and a cornice, topped by a Gothic glazed overlight. Above the doorway is a plaque engraved "MECHANICS INSTITUTION 1837." On both floors, there are windows with projecting sills on either side of the entrance. The building has a moulded stone gutter and a hipped roof. The right-hand return consists of six bays with three cottage doorways in the basement and single-light and two-light windows on each floor. The institute once housed a library of 4,000 volumes, a lecture room (now a ballroom), and a museum.