Crown Hotel

The Crown Hotel, formerly The Crown Inn, dates to the mid-16th century with later 17th-century and 19th-century alterations. It has cellars beneath part of the building. The front facade is a mock-Tudor addition from the 19th century. The building is timber-framed, rendered, and has plaintiled roofs, with two internal chimney-stacks and one end stack, all with plain red brick shafts. A coved cornice runs along the top. The front has a range of five large, two-light casement windows, each with a moulded wooden hood-mould. A wide, matching moulded surround frames the central entrance, which has a small, mock-Tudor doorway with crowns on the capitals. The building has a complex layout with extensions and two long wings at the rear. The original range, covering most of the front, was originally arranged with a three-cell plan, featuring an internal chimney-stack and a cross-entry, with a jetty along the front. The timber framing on this range is plain, with decorative elements consisting of two service doorways to the left of the current entrance, both with four-centred arched heads and moulded spandrels. A similar doorhead has been blocked up beside the chimney-stack. A 17th-century addition extends to the north end of the front and continues in a long wing to the rear. A late 17th-century extension behind the centre of the front range has twin gables facing eastwards and contains a staircase with turned balusters, an open string with applied brackets, and a wreathed handrail. Group value is evidenced by its contribution to the character of the Market Hill.