The Wool Mart

Former warehouse and wool market, now auction rooms, erected in 1825, with C20 alterations.

Materials: the building is constructed or red brick with brick-coped gables and a pantile roof covering.

Plan: the principal warehouse building is aligned north-south, with a modern single-storey replacement building extending westwards at it southern end, resulting in an L-shaped plan.

Exterior: the Wool Mart stands on a site which slopes downwards from south to north, and is of three storeys. The east frontage to Lee Street has six windows to the two upper floors, those to the first floor with two-light casement frames set below shallow segmental arched heads. One opening retains horizontal timber louvres. The upper floor windows are of similar form, below flat heads set almost at eaves level. The ground floor has two doorways with C20 sliding gear and vertically-planked doors. There is a similar pattern of fenestration to the west elevation. The north gable has tiered taking-in doorways with vertically-planked double doors to each floor. The upper doorway incorporates a swinging hoist arm for raising goods from street level. A single-storey wing at the south end of the building is a recent replacement of an earlier structure of similar form, and is not of special interest.

Interior: the interior of all three floors remains open plan, with substantial original bridging beams, floor joists and floor boards. A wide, open stair is set against the west side wall. The roof is supported by collar and tie beam trusses carrying a single tier of tusk-tenoned purlins. The truss collars are dovetailed into the principal rafters and nail-fixed.