Claver Morris House

Claver Morris House

A detached canonical house, now part of Wells Cathedral School, built in 1699 by Dr Claver Morris at a cost of £807 14s 6d.

The house is constructed of local stone rubble, partly rendered, with ashlar dressings. It has a hipped Welsh slate roof with rendered chimney stacks. The plan is symmetrical with a double-depth layout, central hall, projecting porch, and fireplaces to the centre spine.

The building is 2 storeys with attics and a basement, arranged in 5 bays. The narrow centre bay projects as a full-height porch. A heavy modillion cornice with brackets runs across the front, incorporating the eaves gutter. The basement windows, which sit above ground level, are 2-lights with plain stone mullions and moulded architrave. At ground and first-floor levels, all windows are 12-pane sashes in bold stone bolection-mould architraves; those at ground floor also have moulded cornices. The glazing-bars are too thin to be original to 1699, indicating replacement in the mid or late 18th century.

A small hipped dormer with a glazed narrow door sits central to the steep hipped roof with interior valley. The porch returns at first-floor level contain circular windows with bolection mould surrounds. The entrance is approached by 14 steps and has an almost fully glazed door with 9 panes and a 3-pane transom-light above, set in a moulded eared architrave with a pediment hood over a frieze of acanthus leaves.

A flat-roofed extension at basement level extends to the south side. The south flank of the house has a pointed arched single-light window with square head at ground-floor level and a 2-light ovolo-mould mullioned window with moulded hood at first floor. Similar windows appear on the north side, along with an oval recess having a square label. Rear windows are similar, with some larger windows having mullion and transom divisions.

The interior retains considerable detailing corresponding with the 1699 date. Bolection-moulded panelled doors, doorcases and fireplaces survive throughout, including one very large fireplace in a rear room. The first-floor left room features an Adamesque fireplace with a triple opening to its left, the central opening having an elliptical arch with architraves, keystones and imposts. Shutters remain to the front windows.

The staircase has heavy turned painted balusters and a moulded handrail. Various enriched cornices survive, including one with bamboo-based detail. One plastered ceiling features very large panels with raised mould surrounds. In the basement is a central very wide beam.

The house exemplifies the raising of the main floor on a half-basement as a 'piano nobile', giving added dignity to the design.

Historically, a small garden 46 feet wide and 66 feet long was granted to Roger Bourne in 1620, but the first recorded house is that now on the site. The Dean and Chapter made several proposals to take over the property as a canonical house, but these were not pursued. After serving briefly as a school from 1940 to 1943, the property was leased to the Cathedral School in 1955.