35 And 36, Load Street

A house, dating from the early 17th century, was later cased in 1722 and subsequently altered in the mid-19th century and the mid-20th century. It is now divided into two shops and flats. The building is timber-framed and has a rendered brick facade with a tile roof. It is three storeys high, with brick coped verges and a parapet. Bands delineate the first and second floors. A central lead drain pipe with a decorative rainwater head inscribed "1722/ LR" is present. There are four windows per floor, with four-pane boxed sashes on the first and second floors. The ground floor has a central passage and a partially glazed entrance door. A shop front is on the left, with pilasters and brackets to the cornice. It has a recessed central entrance with a two-leaf half-glazed door flanked by three-pane windows. The shop to the right has a flat canopy over a three-pane shop window, with a half-glazed door and overlight to the right of the window. Inside, the front room on the first floor of number 35 features an elaborate plaster ceiling consisting of six panels, four of which retain their decorative scheme, probably from the early 17th century. The ceiling beams are plastered. The staircase features a moulded handrail and pierced carved balusters.