Black Dog

Black Dog is a house located on Tor Street in Wells, with origins dating back to the late 16th century and a facade from the 19th century. The building is constructed from local stone rubble and features a roughly coursed clay pantiled roof, which has a coped gable on the south side and an abutment to the north, along with a brick chimney stack. Originally, it had a three-unit cross-passage plan with the stack positioned against the passage and services integrated into the adjoining property, and there is a small wing at the rear left.

The exterior of the house is two storeys high with four bays and varied window styles. The lower bay 2 contains a 16-pane sash window beneath a timber lintel, while the other windows are mostly plain casements with a single horizontal glazing bar. The upper bay 2 and both levels of bay 4 have three-light windows, and bay 1 has a two-light window on the upper level. The windows in bay 3 are cross-glazed casements. Additionally, there is a chamfered four-centre archway in lower bay 1, which features a shaped 19th-century six-panel door and a footscraper to the right.

Inside, the property has a single depth with two rooms, although some later subdivision has occurred. The ground floor includes some stone flagged flooring and large chamfered and stopped beams. On the first floor, there are three collar trusses with chamfered and tenoned in-line purlins and pegged through principals. One of the upper rooms contains a small stone fireplace with an ovolo-mould surround and an early six-panel door. The staircase is a transverse 20th-century flight.

Historically, the property was once owned by the Dean and Chapter, with records indicating its existence as far back as 1558. The name "Black Dog" suggests that it may have been a former inn.