47 Cross Street

Nos. 47-49 Cross Street and No. 1 Monk Street form an L-shaped block dating to the 18th century. The frontages are rendered and painted, with smooth stucco on Nos. 47 and 49 and roughcast on No. 48, all covered by natural slate roofs and red brick stacks. The building is of double depth and has three main storeys, with a lower second storey, incorporating seven windows to Cross Street and three to Monk Street. Nos. 47 and 48 are two windows wide, while No. 49 and No. 1 are three windows wide, with a blind bay to Monk Street.

A Doric giant order is positioned on a band at first floor level, though partially obscured by the shopfronts. The Cross Street elevation features clasping corner pilasters and another set between Nos. 48 and 49, presenting four windows to the right and three to the left. No. 47 has narrow bands separating the floors and the junction with No. 48. The Monk Street elevation clearly displays both the first floor band and the pilasters descending to the plinth, arranged with a central pilaster flanked by two bays on either side, the final pilaster acting as a quoin but not clasping the corner.

A shopfront dating probably to the 1920s exists at No. 47, featuring a display window with slim mullions and curved glass, and a six-panelled house door to the left with panelled reveals. A photograph from 1909 reveals a different frontage with the house door on the right, while a 1934 photograph shows the current arrangement. The first floor windows are 8 over 8 sashes, and the second floor windows are 4 over 8. No. 48 has a late 20th century shopfront with a single-pane display window and a door on the left, with matching windows above. No. 49 has a late 19th century public house frontage with arched heads and a layout of two-light window – door – two-light window – door – single light, which continues around the corner into Monk Street with two further lights. The first floor windows are similar, with a central narrow 6 over 6 pane sash. A 1909 photograph shows this window previously featuring a pedimented architrave, potentially indicating a former balcony used for displaying election addresses before the Reform Act, directly opposite another prominent hotel. This architrave was removed by 1934. The Monk Street elevation has single-light windows with a transom on the ground floor and a giant doorway to No. 1, featuring a panelled door, transom light, panelled architrave and flat head supported on carved brackets. First floor windows have six over six pane sashes, and the second floor windows have three over six. Deep eaves are supported by brackets to both elevations. The roof is hipped at both ends to Cross Street, but gabled on Monk Street. Six massive brick stacks are present, two on each ridge and one at each end of the block. The rear elevation includes dormers and roof-lights indicating a usable attic space.

Reported surviving timber framing approximately 2 meters behind the facade suggests an original construction date in the 16th or 17th century, though interior inspection was not undertaken during the most recent survey.