Charlotte Row (Terrace)

Charlotte Row, Weymouth

Public house and commercial rooms, formerly Harvey's Library and Assembly Rooms, and latterly the Royal Dorset Yacht Club. Late 18th century, in use by 1800, modified and extended mid to late 19th century. Rendered, with slate roof.

The front block contains a one-room ground floor with two rooms over, each with high ceilings. The entrance lobby to the right has the main stair at its rear. A second range fronting New Street dates from the mid to late 19th century and contains a second staircase. Between the two ranges sits a small square central courtyard.

The front elevation is two storeys with attic and basement. Three two-light casement hipped dormers sit above five lofty two-light casements with overlight, set in recessed arched panels. The centre arch is wider with an elliptical head. The first floor originally featured a cast-iron balcony, now disappeared. The ground floor spans five bays and contains four arched four-pane sashes with channelled rustication, returning to a narrow arched bay. A set-back door stands to the right, all beneath a full-width frieze and dentil cornice carried on slender unfluted Ionic columns on high bases without entasis, paired at the ends. Set back on two plus two steps to the right is a large three-panel 19th century door with side-lights and deep transom light. Between the column bases runs a stone plinth with two recessed panels, possibly replacing former basement lights. The blind arcading to the first floor has a slender necking band. A bold full-width stone moulded cornice with blocking course and parapet carries end stacks.

The rear elevation in New Street is rough rendered, three storeys and basement, with mainly plain sashes on stone sills. The second floor has a paired sash with four-centred bars in the upper lights and a two-light casement with transom above four-pane sashes, with a smaller sash to the centre. At ground floor are two sashes each side of a panelled door with transom light on four steps, in deep reveals with incised detail. The basement is approached by a flight of concrete steps and contains three sixteen-pane sashes and a door, with a brick retaining wall to the area. The returns have a raised parapet and a large brick stack to the left.

Interior detail is mainly late 19th century, though some original features survive on the first floor alongside 20th century alterations. The inner lobby has a wide pair of glazed doors with side-lights and transom light, with a similar pair giving access to the main room to the left. This room contains a 20th century bar, match-board wall lining, and a heavy fireplace in black veined marble with stumpy Doric columns. The main stair occupies a well with curved outer end and features a heavy moulded and swept hardwood handrail on cast-iron balusters, one to each tread with double vertical and embellished ends. The open string has scrolled tread ends. The staircase receives light from a large rectangular lantern with pent top. Parallel and further back runs a second, simpler stair of elongated dogleg form with stick balusters and Doric newels, possibly part of the original design.

The first floor main room displays Adamesque detail with a fine painted fire surround, including Delft tiles each side of the grate, and a lofty dentil cornice. The rear of the room has a large bullseye light facing the small interior court. In the rear range, two main chambers at the upper level feature exposed dark-stained roof timbers of characteristic late Victorian form, with two principal arch-braced trusses carrying paired secondary trusses at the hipped ends.