The Market House (Premises Of A J Hicks)

The Market House, located in Sturminster Newton Market Place, is a shop that originated in the 17th century but was largely rebuilt in the 18th century and altered in the 19th century. The building features a mix of stucco, rubble, and brick in Flemish bond, topped with a tile roof that has gable ends and brick stacks. It stands two storeys tall with an attic and has an irregular pattern of windows. The shop fronts from the 19th century are divided into elliptical headed lights by round columns with capitals. There is a variety of casement and sash windows, most of which lack glazing bars, and gable dormers with 19th-century sashes in the roof.

The east facade retains remnants of a 17th-century stone building on the left, including a blocked three-light square headed stone mullioned window with straight chamfers. The remainder of the wall is made of 18th-century brickwork and shows traces of round headed arches, which may have been part of a former arcade. The fenestration is primarily from the 19th century, and the gables feature moulded bargeboards. The building occupies the site of the old market house, and the 17th-century fragments may be remnants of this structure. Historical accounts indicate that the market house burned down in 1729, and it is noted that the current building was formerly a rectory converted into a dwelling house by John Bird.