Former Wheelwright's Workshop

Summary

A former wheelwright’s workshop or forge constructed in approximately 1880.

Reasons for Designation

The former wheelwright’s workshop is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* for the quality of the design which uses modest materials to their best advantage.

Historic interest:

* as an example of a small-scale former wheelwright’s workshop whose function remains clearly legible in the fabric of the building.

Group value:

* as an important element in the development and use of the Roundhouse complex, it forms part of a cohesive group along with the former stables, gatehouses and storage building.

History

The Birmingham to Wolverhampton canal was constructed in 1766-1769 with engineering from James Brindley and was the first canal to be constructed in Birmingham. The canal was later ‘straightened’ by engineer John Smeaton in order to create a more direct and cost-effective route for goods transportation.

Prior to development, this site functioned as a canal wharf for stone deliveries, such as Rowley Rag, and possibly for other materials such as coal. The complex of buildings on the junction of Sheepcote Street and St Vincent Street and on the side of the newly straightened stretch of canal first appears to have been developed in the 1870s, when the stable and Gatehouses were built for the Corporation of Birmingham on the land in 1873-1874 following a suggestion by the Lamp and Paving sub-committee that the wharf become the principal depot for the Public Works committee. The development was the subject of an architectural competition in the early 1870s, which was won by W H Ward, an architect based in nearby Paradise Street. Ward was also the architect responsible for the Great Western Arcade, the Gazette Buildings and Queen’s Corner, Corporation Street.

It is thought that, owing to slight differences in the design and brickwork, that the former workshop was constructed at a slightly later date than the stables and gatehouses. However, the stables, gatehouses and former workshop all appear on the 1890 OS map as a complete group. Whilst the Stables and Gatehouses appear to remain largely unchanged throughout the map regression, the former workshop is depicted with the western and northern end notated as open sided. By the early-C20, these have been enclosed.

The site was still in use as the City of Birmingham Engineers Department when the stables and gatehouses were first designated in 1976. The former stables, gatehouses and adjoining former workshop were then acquired by British Waterways (now the Canal and River Trust) in 2001, and in 2017 funding was secured for a programme of conservation works. The former workshop has been in use as a public house since the early-C21.

Details

A former wheelwright’s workshop or forge constructed in approximately 1880.

MATERIALS: red brick with some stone detailing.

PLAN: a rectangular plan on a north-south orientation.

EXTERIOR: the building is two-storey and made up of two distinct sections, with an additional single-storey modern section at the northern end, not visible from the street. The distinct sections are characterised by different brick bonds and roof pitches, with the southern section having higher eaves and a shallower roof pitch than the northern section.

To the eastern Sheepcote Street elevation, the northern section has three shouldered gables on the Sheepcote Street façade, which feature round-arched window openings with keystones above. The southern section is smaller, with the eastern façade featuring doorway under a round-headed arch with keystone above, which is surrounded by a brick and stone pediment. The remainder of this section is blind on the eastern elevation, with a pair of recessed panels set either side of the doorway, these feature dentils and blue brick cills.

The western elevation of the building faces the open yard, located immediately south of the former stables. Similarly, the differing sections can be distinguished through the pitch of the roof. The ground floor of the southern section features a large opening, infilled with a modern timber and glass screen. Above, there is a large central opening of window with boarding below and a blue brick segmental arch above, flanked by two smaller windows under a rounded blue brick arch.

The northern segment is five bays, with the left-hand bay now bricked up at ground floor level. The remainder of the ground floor bays have been infilled with modern timber glazing and timber doors. Designed to be open to the yard, the building was supported by cast-iron columns which have been incorporated into the modern adaptation of the building. Above, there is a four-light mullioned timber window under a blue brick segmental arch to each bay; the right-hand bay features a pair of loading doors in the same style.

The southern gable end of the building is angled to abut the canal and towpath and features a centrally aligned chimney stack. To the north of the building, there is a single storey modern extension which houses a toilet block. The topography of the street and canal levels give the illusion of the building being single storey when viewed from the street.


INTERIOR: internally, the building has been adapted for use as a public house. The timber beams comprising the roof structure are exposed. In the southern section of the building at ground floor level, there is a high half-round brick arch fireplace, partially infilled, with a smaller fireplace above, indicative of the building's use as a blacksmith’s workshop.

Sources

Books and journals
Kelly's Directory: Birmingham (1914),

Other
First edition Ordnance Survey Map, 1890
Second edition Ordnance Survey Map, 1904
Third edition Ordnance Survey Map, 1918

End of official list entry

Print the official list entry