17 to 37 John William Street

Retail, offices and warehouses, mid-C19, now retail and residential.

MATERIALS: sandstone ashlar frontage, and coursed stone rear elevations with slate roof and ashlar stacks.

PLAN: 17-37 John William Street is part of a terrace facing east onto John William Street with various rear projections. It has a short return to St Peter’s Street where there is vehicular access into a rear courtyard.

EXTERIOR: 17 to 37 John William Street is of three storeys with rusticated quoins.

John William Street elevation: this is a long 19 bay elevation with a ground floor of shops, although bay six steps back slightly and features access through to Byram Court. This has a flat arch surmounted by the original arch of rusticated voussoirs with an infill of modern brick between the two. Numbers 19-21 also step up slightly south of Byram Court.

The majority of units feature modern shopfronts. However, the doorway of number 19 has Tuscan columns with a full entablature above, whilst the adjacent modern shopfront has a continuous moulded cornice and a rusticated pilaster with two elaborately moulded consoles immediately south of the Byram Court entrance. Although altered, number 37 features a 1930s shopfront with a canted return to St Peter’s Street with Art Deco glazing within the transom lights.

The first-floor windows contain one-over-one sashes with moulded and shouldered surrounds with entablatures, slightly projecting panelled aprons and a continuous moulded sill band. Triangular pediments feature in bays 3, 8, 11, 15 and 18, and a segmental pediment to bay 13. The latter also has a balustrade with vase-shaped balusters.

The second-floor windows have segmental heads, moulded and shouldered surrounds, keystones and two moulded consoles to each sill with a continuous moulded sill band. The windows contain three-over-six sashes, apart from the last three bays which lack glazing bars. Above is a modillion eaves cornice; the cornice to number 19-21 has paired and enriched consoles at both ends. The parapet above has panelled piers.

St Peter's Street elevation: the ground floor is rusticated and has two windows, two doorways and one segment-headed archway (with contemporary cast iron gates) in plain surrounds, with moulded and slightly dropped keystones. The floors above are similarly styled to the John William Street elevation.