Description

WEYMOUTH

SY6779SE TURTON STREET
873-1/20/401 (East side)
18/06/70 No.2
Turton Villa

II

Includes: Turton Villa GLOUCESTER STREET.
House in row, originally detached. Early to mid C19. Ashlar,
some rubble, slate roof. A low Tudoresque 'villa',
overshadowed by later building, with single-storey front.
EXTERIOR: 2-storey back, and a central square tower
incorporating chimney flues. The front range of reception
rooms has an entrance lobby with 2 rooms to the left, and one
to the right, but all capable of being linked as one space
through wide double doors. The stair rises opposite the lobby,
from a transverse central passage, with a top-lit dining room
to the left; a very small courtyard helps to light the
interior. There is an external passage access from Gloucester
Street, with contemporary stone gateway.
To Turton Street are 3 windows and the doorway. The windows
are large 2-light stone chamfer-mullion casements with
transom, but to the left of the door, in a bay slightly
brought forward, is a central splayed light to a central
mullion. A pair of segmental pointed doors with margin-pane
side-lights is set in deep moulded reveals. A moulded label
runs across the front below the parapet with saddle-back
coping. Above the door is a recessed square panel with the
date 1771; this does not correspond with the architectural
detail of the building, which is more likely of c1840-1860. To
the right is a lofty stack, with high crown and crenellations.
Set back, to the left, is the tower in rubble with dressings.
The back wall is in rubble to a height of approx 2m, raised in
painted brickwork.
INTERIOR: retains most of the original fittings in the front
range. Most of the original pine doors have 2 or 3 narrow
pointed lights in the upper half. The lobby is lined with pine
panelling above a match-boarded dado, and has a large pair of
glazed and panelled doors in moulded surrounds in 3
directions. The square room to the right has a marble
fireplace to 4-centred arch, and match-boarded dado. The 2
rooms to the left have been opened to one by removal of the
intermediate partition. 2 marble fireplaces and hearths
remain, a small door gives to the central passage, and there
is an original fitting to a wide and high recess at the party
wall. The large Dining Room has a rectangular skylight with

raking sides and panelled soffit. The landing to the straight
stair has balusters turned on square. Stone stairs descend to
a cellar, which traditionally is said to have been a secret
passage to Gloucester Lodge, Esplanade (qv).
This was reputedly a lodge for George III's mistress, built on
what was at that time part of the extensive garden to the
Lodge. However, if this is so the present building must be a
replacement for an earlier form, as it seems unlikely to be
earlier than about 1840. It is of considerable interest in the
context of later brick speculative developments all around.

Listing NGR: SY6793079361

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26441081

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

• 
  Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius (Penguin Art & Architecture)
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of History Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of Historic Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  Maintaining and Repairing Old Houses: A Guide to Conservation, Sustainability and Economy
• 
  Yorkshire: York and the East Riding (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Lancashire: Liverpool and the South-West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)