History

Built as a commercial hotel in 1889 and unaltered externally.
The land was developed by Cardiff Corporation, hence the name, on land previously occupied by Canton Market.

Exterior

Built of dark grey rockfaced pennant sandstone rubble with painted stone dressings and Welsh slate roofs. In a mixed Gothic style. Two storeys and attic with a taller four storey tower over the main entrance. Convex curved frontage on the corner of Cowbridge Road East and Llandaff Road. The block continues with an additional three bays to the left, these are Nos.190-194 (even) Cowbridge Road East (qv). The first bay from the left is as Nos.190-194 and was probably built as a shop with accommodation over but is now part of The Corporation. This has an elliptical arch for the ground floor shopfront, above this a corbelled 4-light oriel, each light with 1 over 2 panes with mullions and transoms. This is flanked by single light 1 over 2 pane windows. Above the oriel is a 2-light gabled dormer with strip vent in the gable. Tall brick stack to the steeply pitched roof.
The hotel proper has three doors and six windows on the ground floor D.W.D.W.D.W.W.W.W. The windows are 3-light arch headed sashes with colonnettes, the two far right bays are 2-light. Doors with elliptical arches and colonnette jambs. The centre bay is the main entrance and above this is a corbelled oriel, as before. To the left of this are three 2-light windows and two 3-light ones. To the right are one 3-light and three 2-light windows. The attic floor has four dormers to the left and three to the right, as before. Above the entrance at this level is a small 2-light window and this is in a square tower which rises through another floor which is arcaded with four strip lights to each face and a pyramidal roof. Steeply pitched roof with tall brick stacks. Rear elevation not seen.

Interior

The ground floor has been opened out into one bar space with a little joinery and one fireplace surviving. Upper floors not seen.

Reasons for Listing

Included as a bold and unaltered piece of late C19 street architecture which has group value with the attached Central Library (qv) and the listed buildings on the south side of Cowbridge Road East.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• The Corporation at Wikipedia
• The Corporation official website
• Wikidata Q24182501

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas
• 
  Listed Buildings, Conservation Areas and Monuments
• 
  Building Small Projects (New Best of Fine Woodworking)
• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Surrey (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects, Supplement 2014