Heathcoat Hall

TIVERTON

SS9512 WELLBROOK STREET, Tiverton 848-1/6/334 (North side) No.16 Heathcoat Hall

GV II

Workingmen's social club. 1874-6 by John Hayward of Exeter. Grey local stone ashlar front with dressings of Ham stone. Slated roof. Original chimney of same stone as front wall, at right-hand end of middle range; top designed as an entablature. Red brick chimney of about 1900 at left-hand end. EXTERIOR: single-storey centre range with 2-storey wings. Symmetrical classical design with 5-bay centre range flanked by projecting, gabled wings each 2 windows wide. Centre range has 5 large round arched windows standing on a broad sill band, the heads of the arches having moulded archivolts with keystones and continued moulded imposts. Middle window truncated to accommodate a doorway with projecting stone surround; moulded architrave, plain frieze and moulded cornice on brackets. 2-panelled double doors. Outer windows have 4-paned sashes, the whole enclosed by margin lights, those below impost level being designed as very narrow sashes. Window above doorway has similar glazing. In the wings, windows are flat headed with moulded architraves and keystones; continued sills to second storey, linking up with continued imposts in centre range. On inner face of each wing a round-arched doorway with moulded architrave and keystone; C20 flush wooden doors. Centre range has moulded eaves cornice carried round sides of the wings; latter have moulded barge-boards resting on the ends of the eaves cornice, forming a sort of open triangular pediment. INTERIOR: not inspected. HISTORY: the Devon Record Office has John Hayward's bill of 1874 for: Attending Mr Fisher on the site of intended workmen's Hall; advising about the buildings, and supplying ground plan, elevation, and working drawings for them'. The bill, for »6 6s was paid on 7 December 1876. In that month a billiard table was bought from George Wright & Co of London, complete with cues, balls, etc., for 32 guineas. White's Directory of Devon, 1878, describes the building asHEATHCOAT HALL, ANDWORKING MEN'S INSTITUTION'...built in 1876 by Sir John H Amory-Heathcoat, Bart., M.P., at a cost of »1,000... It has a large hall, capable of seating 600 persons, and used for lectures, concerts, &c.; reading, billiard, smoke rooms; and a circulating library of upwards of 400 volumes'. F.J. Snell, Chronicles of Twyford, 1892 (p.356) calls it the Heathcoat Memorial Hall, opened 23rd May 1876, and says it was `expressly for the benefit of the factory employees, whose institute prior to this date had been in a large upper room extending over a row of cottages in Quick's Court'.

Listing NGR: SS9510812640