The Old Library

The Old Library, formerly known as No.2 Girls' Grammar School, is a building located on Court Barton in Ilminster. It dates from the early 19th century and has undergone some alterations over time. The structure is made of Ham Hill stone ashlar and features a slate roof with stepped stone coping and the base of a former ball finial on the forward-facing gable end. There are brick stacks on the left return. The building is two storeys tall and has a two-window range. The first floor has 6/6-pane sash windows, while the ground floor features a larger central window. The right return includes a 3/6-pane sash window on the first floor and a 20th-century door below.

Inside, the building retains much of its character from around 1840, with the standout feature being an open-well, open-string staircase at the rear, which is illuminated from above and has a wreathed mahogany handrail and a curtail-step. The main front room boasts a white marble fireplace and a large ceiling rose, which may date from the later 19th century. Additionally, a wall with gate piers and gates fronts Nos 27, 28, and 29 and is listed separately. A 19th-century painting indicates that the first-floor windows were originally dormers, and the gable is likely a late 19th-century alteration.