Listed Building: CUSTOM HOUSE (467436)

WEYMOUTH SY6878NW CUSTOM HOUSE QUAY 873-1/24/62 (North side) 18/06/70 No.8 Custom House GV II Warehouse and living accommodation, later Custom House, currently occupied by HM Coastguard. Late C18 original fabric, much modified early C19. English bond brickwork front with some darker brick to quoins and jambs, and diaper decoration, rendered returns and back, slate roof. PLAN: building returns to East Street at an obtuse angle, and the back is in Helen Lane; the original layout had the main staircase to the right, between 2 principal rooms, and the second floor was one large storage space, but there have been later sub-divisions. EXTERIOR: 3 storeys and attic; the Quay front is 2 windows wide, but with an inserted square, flat-roofed oriel to the second floor, with glazing bars to a 2-light front and single-light return, with transom, and vertical boarded skirt. This is flanked by 6-pane centre-hung casements to cambered heads, above 2 large 12:12:12-pane oriels with panelled frieze, dentil cornice, and panelled mullions, to plain skirts over paired 4-pane sashes to a wide mullion and stone sills. At the centre a pair of panelled doors in an arched opening has a C20 channelled surround, with open triangular pediment on heavy consoles. Above this is a painted Royal Arms in cast-iron. There is a plinth, stone frieze mould and cornice, blocking-course and coped parapet. The left return, rendered, has a large stack. The front to East Street is rendered, with a 9-pane pivot window flanked by louvres over a 12-pane sash in flush moulded box; at ground floor is a 4-pane sash, and two 6-panel doors in heavy Roman Doric pilaster doorcases. Eaves stack at the centre. Rear, in 2 sections, has a flat-roofed dormer with slate cheeks, with central 6-pane light flanked by horizontal boarding. At second floor are 3- and 2-light casements with transoms to wide segmental heads, and 2 small 4-pane lights, above 2 paired 12-pane sashes with mullion, to segmental heads, and at the ground floor a blocked doorway, broad replacement door, and a 2-light window to heavy sill. The second unit, to the right, which returns to a squared rubble double gable end, has a similar dormer, but to a hipped roof, above a broad 3-light with transom under segmental head, paired 12-pane sash, and a 2-light, plus doors with louvres. There is some stonework in the lower walls of both rear sections, and the left-hand end has flush Portland stone quoins. INTERIOR: not inspected, but RCHME records moulded cornice and dado to the first-floor front room, and the roof supported by composite king-post trusses. HISTORICAL NOTE: a panel in the entrance lobby records that the building was used as a warehouse by Messrs Robilliard and Ahier from 1794; Robilliard lived on the ground floor. The large wheel and gibbet, on display, were part of the hoist system in Helen Lane. By 1810 both men were out of business. In 1874 the property was owned by Sir Frederick Johnstone, who leased it to HM Customs. It was purchased by the Secretary of State in the 1970s, but vacated by Customs in 1985. In July 1988 it was taken over by HM Coastguard. (RCHME: Dorset, South-East: London: 1970-: 339). Listing NGR: SY6802778725

Record last edited

Sep 30 2009 11:58AM