The Guildhall

The Guildhall is a timber-framed building constructed before 1495, originally serving as a guildhall for St. James' guild, and now a house. It has a clunch rear outshut and painted brick foundations. The roof is thatched and has a rebuilt ridge chimney stack with three rectangular shafts. The building is two storeys high and features a timber frame of five bays, with jetties, plastered gable walls, and a plastered ground floor. Two doorways were originally facing the street, though the main entrance has since been moved to the rear. The windows are casements, with three on each floor, some including leaded lights, and one smaller casement window on the right-hand side. The interior, last inspected in 1983, contains two inglenook hearths, first-floor panelling, and some wall paintings. Exposed floor frames and roll-moulded beams are also present. The building was used as a poor house in the 18th century, with the scratched date of 1717 visible within. Historical records, including a report from 1839 and entries in the Cambridgeshire Victoria County History (Vol. VI, p.167) and the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (Cambs notes, 1953), document the building's history.