Lock Keepers Cottage

Lock Keepers Cottage

A former canal lock keeper's cottage, now a private dwelling, situated on Bank Mill Lane in Berkhamsted. The building dates from the early 19th century with a 20th-century addition to the rear.

The main structure is a two-storey building constructed of painted brick and smooth render finished walls, under a plain tile pitched roof. It originally had a simple rectangular plan-form but now has an L-shaped plan due to a small 20th-century wing added to the rear. The building features a distinctive split-level form, with the entrance accessed from the raised level of the lockside and a rear entry at lower level, now passing through the 20th-century single-storey extension.

The canal-facing elevation contains a range of three double-hung, horned sash windows with 3-over-3 pane frames, flanking a simple 4-panel door. The rear elevation has a bow-fronted 3-light casement window at ground floor with a half-glazed door, and a single 2-light casement at first floor, all later additions. The gable ends are blind. The building has a central ridge-stack and an external eaves-stack to the rear between the junction with the 1960s extension.

The 20th-century rear extension is constructed of unpainted orange brick under a plain tile pitched roof, with modern side-hung casement windows and a modern door. A single-storey detached lean-to outbuilding is set against the canal retaining wall, separated from the cottage by a flight of steps leading to the canal towpath.

The interior comprises three interlinked rooms at upper level, with the central stack separating the two principal rooms at the west end of the cottage, this arrangement being repeated in the two lower ground rooms. The cottage retains its original staircase with a full height newel post and solid balustrading. Original panel and planked doors remain throughout. The 20th-century extension contains a kitchen and bathroom of no historic interest.

The Grand Union Canal, formerly the Grand Junction Canal, was begun in 1792 and completed in 1805, connecting the Midlands with London. This dating suggests an early 19th-century origin for the cottage. The waterway followed the course of the river Bulbourne through Berkhamsted, and its wharf at Castle Street was known as the Port of Berkhamstead due to its importance to the town's trade and economy. The canal remained commercially operational until the 1960s.

The associated lock remains in situ beside the cottage as part of its historic context. Despite undergoing reconstruction work in the 19th century, it remains operational today. The setting of the building alongside the lock complex remains unchanged, with the functional relationship between the two structures remaining clearly legible.

The cottage has undergone little external or internal alteration and retains its functional and locational significance in relation to the management of the local waterways.