The Wool House

The Wool House, also known as The Maritime Museum and formerly listed as Old Wool Store, is a Grade I listed building located on Bugle Street. It dates back to the 14th century, with alterations made in the 18th century. The building was constructed by Cistercian monks as a storehouse for wool intended for export to Europe, making it the only surviving freestanding medieval warehouse in Southampton.

It features two storeys built of stone rubble with angle quoins and an old tiled roof. The west side is supported by three massive semi-circular buttresses, likely added in the 16th and 17th centuries. During the 18th century, the building was repurposed to house French prisoners of war during the Seven Years War and the Napoleonic Wars, at which time the quay front was rebuilt, incorporating segmental-headed windows and a central door.

Inside, the Wool House boasts a fine 14th-century arched collar-braced roof made of Spanish chestnut, and there is an aumbry set in the northern bay of the west wall at first-floor level. The building is also scheduled as an ancient monument.