The Black Swan Hotel

The Black Swan Hotel is an 1849-50 hotel, designed by Hamilton and Medland, situated on the north-west side of the intersection of Southgate Street with Commercial Road. The original building extended for five bays facing Southgate Street, with a curved frontage at the street intersection. A further three bays along Commercial Road were demolished around 1965 and rebuilt in 1993. The building is constructed of ashlar, brick, and slate, with a mansard roof featuring dormers and ashlar stacks.

The symmetrical Italianate street facade of three bays is flanked by wider, slightly projecting end bays (1:3:1). The ground floor features banded rustication and vermiculated quoins on the end bays, capped by a band at first-floor level. A moulded string course runs at window-sill level, topped by a crowning entablature with a decorated frieze, modillion cornice, and a pediment above each end bay. The central bay originally contained a blocked semicircular arched doorway, now a window, framed by pilasters and a shallow canopy. Each end bay has a wide doorway with a segmental-arched head and a panelled door with side and top lights, the upper panels glazed. Sashes are set in recessed openings with segmental arched heads, the arches featuring rusticated voussoirs decorated with portrait heads. The first floor has tripartite windows in the end bays, with a central sash flanked by narrow side sashes, framed by pilasters and a pediment. The three central bays have sashes within moulded architraves and entablatures. The second floor features tripartite windows in the end bays with sashes in eared architraves, and single sashes in similar frames in the central bays. All sashes have single vertical glazing bars. The pediments above the end bays contain lunette windows. Two roof dormers have segmental roofs and casements with glazing bars. Three ashlar stacks are topped with moulded cornices and ceramic chimney pots. The rear elevation is brick, with a canted bay window on the ground floor and a tall arched sash (3x10 panes) lighting the stairwell.

The interior is believed to have been completely refitted and lacks original features.