The Interchange On North Side Of Grand Union Canal Including The Horse Tunnel And Stairs, Vaults And Canal Basin

The Interchange on North Side of Grand Union Canal

This is a four-storey warehouse block built directly over a canal basin, with its ground floor supported on a line of octagonal steel columns running down the centre of the basin. The building is constructed of orange stock brick laid in English bond with blue engineering brick dressings and red brick used for the dentil cornice and window arch heads. The rectangular block has 24 window bays along its long east and west elevations and six window bays to the north and south elevations.

The east elevation features segmental arched windows with multi-light metal frames to the upper three storeys. The ground storey on both east and west elevations has modern panelled and glazed infill within the original steel frame supports. The west elevation is similar in design but has loading bays on each floor in three of the bays rather than windows. The south elevation, which fronts onto the canal, has round window arches on the ground floor and segmental arches on the upper storeys. The north elevation is notable for a prominent water tower with blind arches and corbelling rising above the roof line of the central two bays.

Along the canal frontage either side of the building are end walls, each with three round arched windows, of single-storey blocks. These were originally fitted with glazed canopies running the length of the building. The eastern side enclosed railway tracks and platforms, while the western side was used for road distribution.

The interior retains brick-arched fireproof construction to the ground and first floors. The floors above are wooden, constructed of thick joists abutting each other.

The canal basin is roofed with brick jack arches supported on steel joists and the octagonal steel columns running down the centre. The basin is linked on its eastern side to vaults constructed between 1901 and 1905. These have brick jack-arch vaulting on steel beams supported on brick-encased steel columns and connect to the basin through four narrow doors which originally had self-closing iron fire doors.

To the west lie vaults constructed between 1854 and 1856. The surviving part extends approximately 55 metres long by 28 metres wide. The main vaults run east-west and are about 3.7 metres wide and about 2.9 metres high from floor to crown. The segmental transverse arches are about 1.8 metres in height and vary in width from 3.4 to 4 metres. The extension of these vaults west along the canal, now under 30 Oval Road, has been largely demolished and incorporated into modern building fabric and is not included in the listing.

The Eastern Horse Tunnel runs along the northern edge of the vaults. At the north-eastern end it is blocked but extends beyond this in a north-eastern direction to Stables Yard, where it is now incorporated into Horse Tunnel Market. A later spur, which continues into what was originally the western part of the goods depot, is also blocked. The original tunnel turns south at this point, running along the western side of the vaults, and exits via a section of horse stairs under what is now 30 Oval Road. The above-ground elements of 30 Oval Road are modern and are not included in the listing.

The horse tunnel is of round-arched brick construction with damp-proof cavities in the walls draining to a 15-centimetre pipe below the set stone floor. The tunnel is 3 metres wide and 2.7 metres high to the crown of the arch. Cast-iron ventilation grilles are placed about 3 metres apart in the roof of the tunnel and would have originally provided the only light source.