16-20, Old Orchard Street

This is a row of four houses, numbered 16 to 20, located on Old Orchard Street. They were built in the mid-18th century, likely as part of an incomplete development planned by John Wood the Elder, although Thomas Jelly is thought to have been the actual architect. The properties may slightly predate Jelly’s development at North Parade Buildings around 1754. No.20 may be an even earlier building.

The houses are constructed of limestone ashlar, with the ground floors rendered and painted. They each have three bays, although No.20 now has five bays, potentially incorporating part of the former No.21. All windows are late 18th-century six/six sashes set within plain architraves; the first-floor windows are further accentuated with entablatures. Each house has doorways with pediments and panelled doors, although No.16 lacks a door surround and has an additional entrance to the right. No.19 includes a shopfront with eight panes across and four down. No.20 features wrought iron railings. A modillion cornice runs along the building line, topped by a parapet. The houses have mansard roofs: Nos.16 and 17 have Welsh slate, while Nos.18 and 19 have pantiles hidden from view. No.20 has a pantile mansard with three flat-roofed dormers and six/six windows. Ashlar stacks with decorative pots are located at the ends of the building.

The interiors remain uninspected. The houses once served as public entertainment buildings; No.16 was the Shakespeare Tavern (1809-1906), and No.19 was the King’s Arms in 1800. No.21 was the home of Charles Harcourt Masters, an architect who displayed a model of Bath within its walls.