Weston-super-Mare Library

Weston-super-Mare Library

This library building is constructed in local Cattybrook brick with Bath stone dressings and a slate roof. The structure is rectangular in plan, oriented north to south, with its principal elevation facing north onto The Boulevard. A lift tower and boiler house are positioned on the east elevation.

The principal north-facing elevation is the most ornate part of the building, presenting a symmetrical arrangement of three bays across three storeys with an attic. Bath stone dressings and carvings include drip moulds separating the storeys, plat bands and a dentil cornice, while wide pilasters divide the bays. The ground floor features a high snecked stone plinth incorporating an inscribed polished granite foundation stone. A central doorway sits beneath a wide arch, flanked by glass cabinets on Bath stone bases. Above the arch is a carved panel depicting dragon motifs, fleur-de-lis, swags and regalia, inscribed with 'PUBLIC LIBRARY & MUSEUM / VR / 1837 - 1897'. The bays contain three windows each with eared architraves. The second-floor bays have three half-height windows each, with the central bay holding two windows topped by alternating arched and pointed pediments bearing carved crests in their tympana. A frieze of shells and foliage runs across this level. The central pilasters support two sets of carved muses, executed by Harry Hems of Exeter. At the centre, a carved console supports an oriel window on the third floor, which features four Ionic columns separating three windows with scrolled transoms and keyed arched heads beneath a sweeping lead roof rising to an egg and dart and dentil cornice at the eaves. Either side are rows of five windows with rectangular leaded glazing separated by Ionic columns. An attic storey rises above the central bay, topped by a shaped gable. This contains a Venetian window with Ionic columns and keyed arch, surrounded by carved crown, foliage and scrolls with a floating pediment. The gable has Bath stone coping; Bath stone blocks with carved niches containing vases flank either side, while a cartouche carved in the brick marks the apex. Bath stone blocks with niches and domed heads surmount the corner pilasters.

The side and rear elevations are considerably plainer, presenting two storeys in red brick with Bath stone plat bands continuing the front elevation's rhythm. The side elevations feature a gable to the north with an arched leaded window in its apex. A double doorway with moulded architrave appears on the west side, and large windows are decorated with carved keystones. A flat-roofed single-storey rear extension and the lift tower to the east are constructed in utilitarian red brick.

The interior is organized around an open-well staircase at the front of the building with painted iron balusters and decorative circular adjoining elements, providing access to offices on either side. These offices are modest rooms retaining original windows in moulded frames, while windows in public areas have been replaced. The staircase benefits from good natural light through the large front windows.

The two principal public rooms on the ground floor occupy the front and rear of the building as large, lofty open spaces with tall windows positioned high on the walls to permit shelving arrangements. They are punctuated by cast-iron columns and connected by two wide openings in what was originally the rear wall of the first phase. Decorative cast-iron radiators remain from the original phase, along with pitch pine block flooring now covered by carpet tiles; the second phase features high wall-mounted radiators. A central issue desk and inserted shelving represent late-20th-century replacements.

The first floor is publicly accessible only at the front, containing the former museum comprising two rooms connected by arched doorways. The rear first floor serves as storage and offices, accessed by a separate stairway from the rear extension. High windows and modest detailing characterize these areas, though an inserted ceiling and subsequent subdivision and rearrangement have occurred following the creation of a local history centre on the east side of the front room.

An attic space lies above the centre of the first phase of the building. An inserted ceiling below creates additional floor space to the east and west, reached by an inserted metal spiral staircase to the north and an inserted wooden staircase to the south. Natural light enters through the Venetian window at the top of the principal elevation and through arched windows on the east and west gables.

A 1970s extension to the south contains toilet and kitchen facilities with access to the first floor. This extension is not of special architectural interest.