The Hind Hotel

The Hind Hotel is a complex building, originally a hotel and shop, dating back to approximately 1645, with significant alterations in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is located in Sheep Street, Wellingborough.

The main front of the building presents five bays and is constructed of squared coursed ironstone, with slate, stone slate, and plain tile roofs. The original layout was a courtyard plan. The central arched entrance has a moulded stone surround and a large wooden porch supported by pairs of square Doric columns, topped with a turned balustrade supporting a painted coat of arms and a figure of a golden hind, all added around 1891. Ground floor windows are two-light stone mullion windows with leaded lights, likely dating to around 1872. The first floor features alternating three-light stone mullion Venetian-style windows and four-light stone mullion windows with transoms, which are likely original 17th-century features with leaded lights. Three equal gables each have three-light stone mullion Venetian-style attic windows. A moulded stone string course runs above the first-floor windows. The building is finished with an ashlar parapet to the eaves and gables. Rainwater heads, dated 1741 and 1769, are positioned on either side of the porch, with similar rainwater heads to the far left and right. Brick and stone stacks are visible at the ridge. A two-bay, three-storey extension, dated 1902, is situated to the left and is built in a similar style, with stone mullion windows on each floor.

To the north of the main front, a partially reconstructed range dating from around 1891 includes a ten-bay centre with a mix of two- and three-light stone mullion windows with leaded lights. A six-light, 17th-century, stone mullion window with a transom is found in a gable on the far left, paired with a matching three-light attic window above. A carriage arch with a half-timbered upper storey and a 17th-century gable with stone mullion windows are also present on the far right. There are ashlar gable parapets and ornate kneelers. The rear elevations have been altered in the 19th and 20th centuries, with a section of pitched roof on the far left retaining original plain tiles. The courtyard, which was reputedly once open with a colonnade, is now largely enclosed by 19th-century extensions.

The interior staircase, partially dating back to the 17th century, features a heavy turned balustrade and tall newel finials. First-floor rooms on the main front retain some 18th-century panelling, likely reused. The “Cromwell Room”, on the first floor of the north range, has a 17th-century carved ceiling beam, a moulded plaster ceiling, and panelled walls. A secret catch behind the wall to the right of the fireplace provides access to a small vestibule, and the artefacts within the room may be reset.