25, Market Place

This is a timber-framed house with a shop, located on the Market Place in Uttoxeter. The building likely originated in the late 14th century as a high-status open-aisled hall with two or more bays, and a storeyed wing was added to the west in the 15th century. The front facade was largely rebuilt in brick in 1869. Contemporary accounts suggest the wing originally had exposed timber framing with a decorated coved jetty to the attic storey, while the cross passage had a storeyed porch, likely from the 17th century, when the building served as the Old Crown Inn. The medieval house occupied two and a half burgage plots, and it is possible that earlier work survives in the adjacent property at number 27.

The front of the building has a regular two-window range of three storeys. The windows have wedge lintels, with four-pane sashes on the second floor and two-light casements on the first floor. There is a modern, fully glazed shop window and a secondary entrance on the right side.

The interior contains significant medieval work of considerable quality. The visible aisle bay of the original open hall features a truss, most likely a spere truss, with large jowelled posts, cyma-and hollow-moulded arched braces, a central foliated boss, concave moulded arcade posts, a cambered tie, raked queen posts, a cambered collar, side butt-purlins, and original rafters. There is evidence of a wallplate and close studding to the south side. A partially closed east partition, also with close studding, shows signs of smoke blackening. The roof of the hall range continues intact for nearly a full bay to the east, where it meets the cross wing. The exposed pegging on the east side of the spere truss indicates that the principal face of the hall was originally to the west. The original wing comprised three or four bays, with a main open truss to the first floor displaying simply chamfered braces and a cambered tie, and chamfered and stopped side purlins. A formerly closed truss to the south, with much of its close studding removed, has a cambered collar. The truss to the north has been considerably altered.

Aisled halls are rare in the Midlands, and very few high-quality medieval town houses have been recorded in Staffordshire. It is probable that substantial medieval remains are hidden beneath later cladding.