Stafford Railway Building Society

STAFFORD

SJ9223SW MARKET SQUARE 590-1/10/62 (North side) 16/01/51 No.4 Stafford Railway Building Society (Formerly Listed as: MARKET SQUARE (North side) Old William Salt Library & Premises occ. by Staffs. Exec. Council & HS Shepherd)

GV II

Formerly known as: Old Bank House MARKET PLACE. Office. c1840 with addition of c1870. Brick with ashlar facing; parapeted roof. Classical style. EXTERIOR: 3 storeys, single-window range with later 5-window range to left. Channelled rustication to ground floor; 1st and 2nd floor have flanking giant Corinthian pilasters and top frieze and deep cornice. Round-headed entrance to left of round-headed window, both with archivolt and impost course, C20 door and casement. 1st floor has window with eared architrave, consoled cornice with scrolled cresting and casement, flanking inserted narrow windows; 2nd floor has square window with shouldered and eared architrave and small-paned casement. Ground floor has black letter inscription to spandrel: THE WILLIAM SALT LIBRARY/ ESTABLISHED/1872. 5-bay range has channelled rustication to ground floor with acanthus frieze and cornice; shallow balcony with balustrading to 1st floor; top entablature with festoons and balustraded parapet. Segmental-headed carriage entrance to Bank passage to left of centre has enriched spandrels and brackets to wider balcony above; former round-headed entrance to left end has archivolt and impost course and retains fanlight over C20 infill; right end has 2 round-headed windows with glazing over fielded panels. 1st floor has windows with friezes and consoled cornices over 4-pane horned sashes; 2nd floor has windows with 4-pane horned sashes. Carriageway has scrolled iron lamp bracket. Rear has 2 gabled brick 2-storey wings. HISTORY: the William Salt Library was established here in Old Bank House before its transfer to the present library in Eastgate street (qv) in 1918. (Victoria County History of Staffordshire: Greenslade MW: A History of Stafford (from VCH): London: 1979-: 258).

Listing NGR: SJ9220123349