The Market Court

DARTMOUTH

SX874510 MARKET SQUARE 673-1/8/167 The Market Court 14/09/49 (Formerly Listed as: MARKET SQUARE Market (including central building))

GV II

Market Court House, now used as offices. 1828; renovated c1975. Brown-coloured local sandstone rubble with green-grey sandstone rubble detail; axial stack with rendered brick chimneyshaft; slate roof. PLAN: Rectangular building built on a rough east-west axis in the centre of a cobbled yard enclosed by the pannier market buildings (qv). Originally open on the ground floor with the court on the first floor gained by steps up the east end, now enclosed. EXTERIOR: 2 storeys. Ground-floor arcade of 4 bays each side, 2-bay west end and 3-bay east end, all plain round-headed arches with projecting keystones and springing from plain projecting imposts on plain square columns. Projecting band to first-floor level with blind rectangular panels along sides, C20 replacement casement with glazing bars at west end and doorway at east end from double flight of granite steps. Roof is gable-ended with deep eaves carried on shaped brackets. Gables have richly-carved bargeboards with apex pendants. Ground-floor arcade filled mostly with C20 full-height windows but 2 eastern bays on north side blocked with masonry. East-end arcade has central doorway containing panelled double doors under an arch beneath the stairs. Stairs block the outer arches this end and it may be that there was originally an inside stair and the present east-end first-floor doorway, part-glazed double doors with overlight, is secondary. Early painted board fixed to north side prohibiting the leaving of mules on any public highway, market place or slip, by order of the mayor, Daniel Codner, dated 1839. INTERIOR: Plain with no exposed carpentry. HISTORY: Built on land reclaimed from the medieval tidal mill pond, work supervised by the Rev.Charles Holdsworth using family money, the interest to be paid out of borough income. (Freeman, Ray: Dartmouth and its Neighbours: Phillimore: 1990-: P.146).

Listing NGR: SX8766751390