Craik House

TEWKESBURY

SO8932 CHURCH STREET 859-1/6/139 (North side) 04/03/52 Nos.82 AND 83 Craik House

GV II*

Pair of houses in row. Late C15 or early C16. Late C16/17 rear wing, extended late C18/C19. Close studded framing with plaster infill to front, heavy box framing elsewhere, brick underbuild; tile roofs, brick stacks. PLAN: side-entry parallel plan, heated by central shared stack, with lower rear wing making L-plan. EXTERIOR: 3-storey double-jettied front block covering, to the right, entry to Turner's Alley. Front is 2-windowed: No.82 has 3-light C18 leaded casement with central opening light to horizontal bars only, above same at first floor, and C20 3-pane shop front with door, left. The first-floor window is flanked each side by 2 delicately carved cusped blank lights, and a carved Perpendicular frieze runs full width immediately below the jetty. This originally would have been a continuous window strip, carried also across No.83. No.83 has 3-light wood casement at first and second floors, with good small-pane timber bow shop front oriel; to right the opening to the alley. First-floor casement flanked by 3 and 2 cusped panels as to No.82, but slightly wider lights, but bressumer above, not frieze. Large brick stack centred behind ridge, which has some stone ridge tiles. In the brick-paved alley wall to right is heavy timber-frame, to left rendered. Behind front block is 3-storeyed unit in heavy box framing with brick nogging, with 3-light casement, followed by 2-storey brick unit with two 3-light casements and a plank door, left, to No.83. Slightly set back a further heavy framed unit, with large corner post, 3-light at each level, and a part glazed stable door to No.82. INTERIOR: No.82 has very broad ceiling joists and chamfered transverse beam, large corner posts, and a rough bressumer to rebuilt fire. Centre, right a mid C18 winder stair with stick balusters and Doric newels; here some mid C18 fielded panelling. Framing to party walls and back in heavy members. Upper stair simple steep winder, probably C18, with a unit of fielded panelling at head. Corner posts almost cruck-like at heads. A small courtyard, covered with C20 glazing, links with back part of premises, also framed, and with, back right, a blocked doorway with pointed head. In this room are chamfered-stopped ceiling joists. Interior of No.83 not inspected, but basic fabric clearly of same date as No.82 and noted as having fragments of late C16 wall painting to first-floor front room including extracts from Psalm 102 and separate text beginning "Honour thy Father..". HISTORICAL NOTE: Mrs Craik, author of 'John Halifax, Gentleman' (1857) lived in No.83. The cusped first-floor panels constitute a very rare example and highly significant of C15 wooden fenestration, particularly for a town house. An exceptionally fine and well-preserved medieval town house which would repay more detailed investigation.

Listing NGR: SO8915832589