Former Wheelwright's Workshop

This is a former wheelwright’s workshop or forge, dating from approximately 1880. It is constructed of red brick with some stone detailing.

The building has a rectangular plan, oriented north-south, and is composed of two distinct sections, with a single-storey modern extension at the northern end, not visible from the street. The southern section has higher eaves and a shallower roof pitch than the northern section.

The eastern elevation, facing Sheepcote Street, shows three shouldered gables on the northern section, featuring round-arched window openings with keystones above. The smaller, southern section has a doorway under a round-headed arch with a keystone, surrounded by a brick and stone pediment. The rest of this section is blank, with recessed panels either side of the doorway, set with dentils and blue brick cills.

The western elevation, overlooking an open yard south of the former stables, also displays the differing roof pitches of the two sections. The ground floor of the southern section has a large opening currently infilled with a modern timber and glass screen. Above this, a large central window has boarding below and a blue brick segmental arch above, flanked by two smaller windows also under a rounded blue brick arch.

The northern section is five bays, with the left-hand bay now bricked up at ground floor level. The remaining ground floor bays have been infilled with modern timber glazing and doors, originally designed to be open to the yard and supported by cast-iron columns, which are incorporated into the modern adaptation. Above, there is a four-light mullioned timber window under a blue brick segmental arch to each bay, with the right-hand bay featuring a pair of loading doors in the same style.

The southern gable end is angled to meet the canal towpath and has a centrally aligned chimney stack. A single-storey modern extension to the north houses a toilet block. The sloping street and canal levels create the impression of the building being single-storey when viewed from the street.

Internally, the building has been adapted for use as a public house, with the timber roof beams exposed. The southern section at ground floor level retains a high, half-round brick arch fireplace, partially infilled, with a smaller fireplace above, indicating its former use as a blacksmith’s workshop.