The French Horn Public House

The French Horn Public House

Public house built in 1906 for Sheffield brewers Hooson Bros by architect Frederick Hopkinson, with late 20th-century internal alterations.

The building is constructed of red brick with terracotta and faience dressings, banding and decoration. It has tall brick chimneys with moulded cappings and a tile roof with crested ridges and elaborate finials to the gablets.

The plan is L-shaped, with the principal elevation facing Potter Street to the south, returning at the east end and extending northwards in plainer form as a service range.

The principal south elevation comprises five bays across three storeys. The east end bay angles as the building returns northwards for a further three bays at three storeys, then continues at a lower two-storey height for three additional bays. The ground floor features an elaborate and highly decorative display frontage faced in dark and light green faience manufactured by Bermantofts (Messrs Wilcox and Co) of Leeds. It sits upon a low brown-tiled plinth and comprises a series of wide, shallow arch-headed windows rising from a base of rectangular panels. The three- and four-light windows are separated by panelled pilasters with elaborately decorated capitals terminating at a moulded cornice at the head of a faience fascia. The upper lights are glazed with decorative stained glass panels. The front elevation is asymmetrical, with two window bays to the west of a narrow entrance bay and a further window bay with a narrower angled corner bay. The entrance bay is flanked by pilasters and has a keyed oval overlight above the door opening, surmounted by a massive scrolled pediment. The fascia extends through the bay below the pediment and carries lettering reading 'HOTEL', with flanking sections of fascia lettering completing the building's name, reading sequentially 'FRENCH / HOTEL / HORN'. The faience-clad return bays include a secondary entrance detailed in matching style to the main entrance.

The first floor has terracotta horizontal banding extending through the pilasters and enclosed brick panels, with a series of two-light cross windows incorporating arch-headed upper lights with decorative stained glass. The angled bay has a canted oriel window above which is a decorative cartouche set within a set-back gablet. The upper floor comprises a series of gablets with decorative bargeboards, set above paired two-over-two-light sash windows separated by moulded terracotta mullions. Each entrance bay is distinguished by a decorative terracotta cartouche with swags and shell finials to the head of flanking pilasters. The inscription above the main entrance reads 'REBUILT A.D. 1906'; that above the secondary entrance reads '1906'. The remaining bays of the return range are plainly detailed, but the most northerly bays have wide arch-headed window openings.

The interior has been remodelled to create a mainly open-plan space in which few original fixtures and fittings appear to have been retained. The bar counter, back bar and other interior elements appear to be contemporary with the remodelling.

The present building replaced an earlier public house of the same name which in 1906 was said to have been a public house for 130 years and possibly a malthouse before that date. The earlier building stood gable end to the road with a saddlers shop to the west. The site of both buildings was used for the new building, giving the 1906 French Horn a long display frontage to Potter Street.

The building is listed in part for Group Value with the Town Hall, No.10 Potter Street and Nos.23, 23a, 25 and 27 Potter Street.