Little Park Street

Yes, Cliff, pre-restoration. Glad they saved it.

Some of it. I believe that only the façade and some of the reinstalled interior features are original?

Yes, Helen. Thanks to my friend Andy McGeechan on FB: 14 Little Park Street Coventry (Francis Smith 1725) Built on the site of a Jacobean house, it's notable cantilevered staircase was incorporated into this fine Georgian town house. Named "Kirby House" in 1874 after being purchased by local solicitor Thomas H Kirby though it had fallen on hard times by the 20th century. Listed Grade II in 1955. The initial restoration estimate in 1959 was £10.000, but only £6000 could be raised. Coventry City Council tried unsuccessfully to have it delisted to broaden the options but the cost had reached £77.800 by 1971. The real heroes of this piece are the builders WA Blackburn who in 1980 bought it off the financially struggling developers (who'd bought it off CCC) and with Architects Crouch Butler & Savage, and historic consultants RS Melville they salvaged all they could and reproduced everything else using extensive photos taken during 1969. The office blocks either side made the site viable and paid for the restoration at the same time. Sold to Sun Life in 1982 it became Varley Hibbs & Co in 1987 and subsequently the Citizens Advice Bureau in 2013.

Apols about the GIF inclusion but thanks to Martin Wykes on FB - don't think we've had the Masonic Hall captured so well on here before.

Hi Neil, there's a link to that image on post 12, Adrian posted it in July 2012. I also found it using an internet search, so I colourised it out of interest.

Brill, Heathite. Cheers - apols, it was only 9 years ago! I obviously look at too many Old Cov images!

Thanks to the Coventry Archives - looks like a pan of my post #314 but includes that Masonic Hall! Edited by member, 26th Feb 2021 5:31 pm