St George'S Almshouses

POOLE

SZ0090SE CHURCH STREET 958-1/17/14 (South East side) 28/05/74 St George's Almshouses (Formerly Listed as: CHURCH STREET (South East side) Almshouses)

GV II

Priest's house, now almshouses. Early C15, almshouses since 1586 when bought by the Corporation, altered, partly in the C17, restored 1904. Coursed, squared limestone rubble, rendered plinth, 2 pairs of front brick lateral stacks, right-hand return has a small lateral stack, and 2 gable stacks, and a tiled roof with rear stone slate verges and crested ridge tiles. Single-depth parallel plan with a SW rear curved range. Single storey; 6-window range. Rendered plinth, kneelers and coped gables, with 2 near-central C17 brick chimney gables with cornices and pairs of diagonally-set stacks. C17 chamfered ashlar surrounds to C20 three- and 2-light timber mullion windows. 2 central gables, tile-hung above the ground floor, with stacks with cornices, each with a pair of diagonally-set square shafts with brick cornices. The left-hand gable stack has a ceramic panel with arched cornice. Right-hand return has a gable with right-hand window, and a rear range curving E containing a rubble gable over a segmental-arched doorway and with a square stack above. INTERIOR: reported to be much altered, but retaining C15 trusses with tie beams, cambered collars and wind braces below the upper of two registers of purlins. HISTORICAL NOTE: reportedly built for the 4 priests saying masses at the old Church of St James, and taken over by the Corporation until the Poor Law Reforms. The foundation of the Guild of St George was referred to in 1429. Formerly had a timber projecting upper storey, removed in 1904, and hipped eaves dormers to each side, small windows in the gables and front entrances. (RCHME: County of Dorset (South East): London: 1970-: 220; Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Newman J: Dorset: London: 1972-: 328; Hillier J: A Portfolio of Old Poole: Poole: 1983-: 31).

Listing NGR: SZ0091090448